Rose and Ten - The inbetweens and backstories
by SciFiFanForever
Summary: Filling in the bits between episodes and back stories of things mentioned by the characters, and exploring their emotions.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

**48 Bucknell House.**

**Powell Estate, Peckham.**

**Christmas afternoon.**

The Doctor returned from the TARDIS, dressed in a brown pinstriped suit and long brown coat. "God, he looks hot', Rose thought to herself, giving him a big smile. Was this man really her Doctor, the man who used to have big ears and a daft grin?

"Here, that's for you," Jackie said, handing him a parcel wrapped in Christmas paper. "Not that you deserved it when you were all big ears and a moody git." She was still trying to get her head around the fact that he was supposed to be the same man.

"Mum!" Rose said, in a 'I can't believe you just said that' tone of voice.

"Well he was…, all northern an' sullen."

The Doctor gave a single laugh, because he couldn't really disagree. "Thank you Jackie, I'm afraid I didn't get you anything though, sorry."

She smiled at him. "Oh yes you did." She nodded at Rose behind him. He'd given her the best Christmas present ever, her daughter. For months, after Rose had opened the TARDIS console and disappeared, she hadn't know if she was alive or dead.

He unwrapped the present, to find a bottle of…, vinegar?

"Er, thank you Jackie," he said uncertainly. He'd never received a bottle of vinegar as a present before.

"Well, I thought, you can put it on yer chips that I know you're fond of, and you can use it on them Slitherin' things if ya ever meet 'em again," she told him.

"Slitheen," Rose corrected.

"Yeah, them an' all."

The Doctor beamed a smile at her and pulled her into a hug. "That's brilliant! Two presents in one..., brilliant. Thank you."

"An' this is for you sweetheart." Jackie handed her a box wrapped in red paper. "I didn't know if you'd be home for Christmas," she said with a tear in her eye.

Rose gave her a warm smile and pulled her into a hug. "Thanks Mum…, for everythin'. An' this is for you," Rose said, handing her a pyramid shaped parcel.

They exchanged gifts with Mickey as well, and after opening them, they sat down to eat at the dining table, enjoying a remarkably well cooked Christmas lunch. They pulled crackers, read terrible jokes, and put on paper hats. Rose couldn't stop looking at this man who was now the Doctor…, her Doctor.

This man was supposed to be her big eared, daft faced Doctor, and he was…, but at the same time, he wasn't. (Trust him to do something like this) This 'him' seemed to be somehow more comfortable in his skin, less haunted by his past. The old 'him' certainly wouldn't sit down with a family and enjoy Christmas, he wouldn't even have a shepherd's pie.

He saw Rose looking at him and smiled warmly, waggling his eyebrows cheekily. He had surprised himself by agreeing to stay and have lunch, and even more surprised that he was actually enjoying it, although he was sure that Rose being there had a lot to do with that.

Jackie had also noticed that this 'him' was more relaxed and amenable, the other miserable git would never have stayed for Christmas, he'd have been off, taking Rose with him, and leaving her on her own for Christmas.

"Hey, Doctor, there's something I've been wonderin'," Mickey said, as he tucked into his turkey dinner. "What happened to Captain Face, y'know, Jumpin' Jack Flash?"

"Who?" Jackie said.

"Oh yeah," Rose said. "You said he was busy rebuilding the Earth."

The Doctor stopped eating, and stared ahead for a moment, his expression slightly sad. "Jack's timeline took a different path to ours on the Game Station."

"Jumpin' Jack Flash?" Jackie said.

"Will we ever see him again?" Rose asked hopefully.

The Doctor was remembering how he had felt Jack come back to life, and how wrong it felt. His whole existence was an offence to time itself, and he felt it like nausea or heartburn. He was brought back to the present by Rose's question and smiled at her. "Knowing Jack, you can bet on it."

"Who the bloody 'ell is Jack?" Jackie asked forcefully.

"Oh Mum, you'd have loved 'im. Captain Jack Harkness, he was an outrageous flirt." They proceeded to tell Jackie and Mickey about the gas mask people in World War II, and the Chula ship that crashed.

They had the TV on in the background, watching various Christmas themed programs. Harriet Jones, Prime Minister, was on the news, with reporters hounding her about health scares, when the phone rang.

"It's Beth," Jackie told them. "She says go and look outside."

"Why?" Rose asked.

"I don't know," she said, rolling her eyes, "just go outside and look. Come on, shift!"

They put on their coats, and filed out of the door and down to the courtyard.

"Oh, it's beautiful. What are they, meteors?" Rose said. It was a proper Christmas evening, with snow falling and shooting stars in the sky.

The Doctor looked up with a sad expression. "It's the spaceship breaking up in the atmosphere. This isn't snow, its ash."

"Okay, not so beautiful," Rose said.

The Doctor put his hands in his pockets. "This is a brand new planet Earth. No denying the existence of aliens now, everyone saw it, everything's new."

Rose hesitated, looking at her hands "And what about you? What are you going to do next?"

"Well….," he started, looking at the TARDIS and back to her. "Back to the Tardis. Same old life.

Rose had to stop herself from nervously biting her nails. "On your own?"

"Why, don't you want to come?" he asked quickly.

"Well, yeah," she said eagerly.

"Do you, though?" He remembered her reaction to his regeneration.

"Yeah!" she shot back, she SO wanted to be back in the TARDIS with…, well, him.

"I just thought..., because I'd changed.

"Yeah, I thought, 'cos you'd changed…, you might not want me anymore," she said, frowning.

He gave her a big, open mouthed smile. "Oh, I'd love you to come."

"Okay," she said, and they just stood there, grinning at each other like idiots.

A sad, resigned voice behind her broke the spell. "You're never going to stay, are you?" Mickey said.

Both Rose and the Doctor looked at him. "There's just so much out there," she told him. "So much to see…, I've got to."

He understood that, he really did. "Yeah," he said with a smile.

"Well, I reckon you're mad," Jackie told them with her arms crossed. "The pair of you…. It's like you go looking for trouble."

The Doctor skipped over to her and put his arm around her shoulders, looking up to the sky. "Trouble's just the bits in-between. It's all waiting out there, Jackie..., and it's brand new to me. All those planets, and creatures…, and horizons. I haven't seen them yet...! Not with these eyes." He walked back over to Rose. "And it is going to be…, fantastic."

He grinned at Rose and held out his hand for her.

"That hand of yours still gives me the creeps," she said with a laugh. He wiggled his fingers, and hesitantly, she took hold of it. As soon as she held his hand, all doubt and hesitation vanished as she felt the familiar tingle up her spine. As long has she had his hand to hold, everything would be alright.

She snuggled up to him and hugged his arm. "So, where're we going to go first?"

He looked up, deciding on a destination. "Er…." He pointed at the bright star cluster NGC 5897 in the constellation of Libra. That way," he announced, and then changed his mind. "No, hold on." He pointed to the constellation of Virgo, and the supergiant elliptical galaxy of M87. "That way."

Rose pointed hesitantly in the same direction. "That way?" she asked.

"Hmm?" he queried, he wanted her approval.

"Yeah, that way," she agreed, and they grinned at each other again.

"Well, you two star gazers ain't goin' anywhere," Jackie told them.

They both took their eyes from the celestial light show, and frowned at her.

"And why not?" Rose asked haughtily.

"Cos there's Christmas puddin' and mince pies to be eaten yet," she said with a smirk.

"Brandy sauce?" the Doctor asked with a smile.

"Of course!" Jackie said.

The Doctor looked at Rose and winked. "We ain't goin' anywhere yet," he said, imitating Jackie's accent.

And so, they all headed back to the flat to enjoy the rest of their Christmas together. Everyone pitched in to help Jackie with the washing up, before sitting in front of the TV to watch the Christmas specials and chat about life, the universe (that was the Doctor's topic), and everything.

Jackie told them about the months when she was alone, not knowing if they were alive or dead. They both looked suitably sorry and embarrassed for putting her through that torment, and the new 'him' vowed that he would keep reminding Rose to call or text her to let her know she was alright.

Mickey remained unsurprisingly quiet on that subject.

"Why don't you stay tonight, and then you can make a fresh start in the mornin'?" Jackie said as she realised that it was late.

"Watcha think?" Rose asked the Doctor.

He rubbed the back of his neck (a mannerism Rose would come to adore), and shrugged his shoulders. "Fine by me," he said with a smile.

"That's settled then," Jackie said. "Doctor, you can have the spare room again. You must like the bed in there, you spent most of Christmas mornin' in it," she said with a smirk.

The Doctor chuckled at her sarcasm. "I'm fine Jackie; I'll just sit and catch up with all the news on TV."

Rose saw the concerned look on her mother's face. "It's alright Mum, he doesn't need as much sleep as we do."

And then the Doctor realised he could give Jackie a Christmas present after all. "Ooh, Jackie, how many channels have you got on your TV?"

"I don't know..., all the free ones."

He took his sonic screwdriver out of his pocket and held it up, grinning and waggling his eyebrows (another mannerism Rose would adore). "How would you like all of them?"

"Wha? You can do that?" she said open mouthed.

"Merry Christmas Jackie Tyler."

* * *

**48 Bucknell House.**

**Powell Estate, Peckham.**

**Boxing Day morning.**

Mickey had been invited around for a breakfast fry up and the big send off, when Rose and the Doctor would leave. They were sat at the dining table, eating, whilst Jackie went to make a pot of tea.

"Who's been at the jam?" she called through the serving hatch. "There's sticky fingerprints over the label."

The Doctor cleared his throat and seemed to be focussing on something interesting on his plate as he ate.

"Did I hear the door go in the middle of the night?" Rose asked, brushing over her mother's investigation into the jam thief.

"Yes, that was me, I moved the TARDIS away from the bins, and over to the playground. Didn't want it getting cluttered up with post Christmas cardboard boxes and rubbish now, did I?"

"Oh yeah, good idea."

"So, are you all packed then?" Jackie said to her daughter as she brought the tea in.

"Yeah. I've got quite a bit of stuff in my room on the TARDIS already," Rose told her.

"Oh, you've got a room?" Jackie said. She hadn't considered the living arrangements on that weird ship and that there might be more than just that console room.

"Yeah, it's a copy of my room here. The TARDIS did it to make me feel at home…, do you want to see?"

For some reason, that question made Jackie feel uncomfortable. Was it that alien ship, which made you feel dizzy when you walked through the door, or was it that it was the Doctor's, and now her daughter's new home?

"Nah, yer alright Sweetheart, if it's anythin' like yer room here, it'll be a mess," she said with a smirk as she supped her tea.

The Doctor laughed. "No, the TARDIS doesn't like mess, if Rose doesn't pick up her things, the TARDIS does it for her, and then she can't find anything."

"Doesn't like mess?" Jackie said, rolling her eyes. "Don't forget, I've seen that ship of yours…, a right shambles!"

"Ooh, I'm glad we weren't in the TARDIS when you said that, Mum, she'd have had a right strop."

"Right then," the Doctor said, putting his empty mug on the table. "Are you ready?" he asked Rose.

She gave him that broad smile. "Oh yeah, I am SO ready for this."

It had been a great Christmas, even more so now that the Doctor was more amenable to doing domestic, but her feet were getting 'itchy' again for the stars. She went into her room and brought out her bulging rucksack. She put her winter coat on and her woollen hat, before putting on a shoulder bag and shrugging on her rucksack.

Hand in hand, they walked out of the flat, with Jackie and Mickey following, and headed for the playground on the estate, the same playground where she had seen the Bad Wolf message three months earlier. The Doctor went ahead into the TARDIS and started powering up the console. Rose, Jackie, and Mickey were outside, saying their final farewells.

"Have you got everything?" Jackie asked.

"I've got everything, don't worry," Rose said, giving her mum a big, long hug.

"Be careful," Jackie said from inside the hug.

"You'll have to call Mo about that…," Rose started to say.

"Oh, never mind Mo," Jackie told her. She knew where the CD was that Rose had borrowed, she'd return it later.

The light on the TARDIS started to flash and the sound of the engines started up.

"Okay, I'm going now…, I love you!" She gave her mum another quick squeeze.

"I love you," Jackie said.

"Love you, love you," she replied.

She stood in front of Mickey and held his face, kissing him full on the lips. She owed him that much.

"Love you," he said hopefully.

Rose couldn't bring herself to say it back. "Bye," she said, smiling, and turned to run into the TARDIS.

Jackie turned and walked away as the TARDIS faded away. Mickey just stood there, watching sadly, as his now ex-girlfriend left. When the TARDIS had completely disappeared, he looked into the distance briefly, before following Jackie back to the flats, and back to reality.

The time rotor pumped up and down as the Doctor operated the controls. Rose was able to assist with some of the non essential controls.

"So where are we going?" she asked him with a smile.

He leaned over towards her as he adjusted another setting. "Further than we've ever gone before."

She gave him an enormous smile, and they stood there, grinning at each other like idiots.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Rose stepped out of the TARDIS and looked on in wonder at the sight in front of her. Across a wide river, was a futuristic city with flying cars and everything.

The Doctor stepped out behind her and closed the door. "It's the year five billion and twenty three. We're in the galaxy M87, and this...? This is New Earth."

"That's just. That's just…." She started to laugh as a feeling of joy overwhelmed her.

"Not bad. Not bad at all," the Doctor said with a smile.

"That's amazing," she said looking around at the cars flying past. "I'll never get used to this…. Never." She started jumping up and down. "Different ground beneath my feet, different sky. What's that smell?" Her jumping had disturbed the ground beneath her.

He stooped down and snatched a little of the vegetation. "Apple grass," he said rubbing it with his fingers to release the smell.

"Apple grass," she laughed.

"Yeah, yeah," he laughed in agreement of the wonder of it.

She stood there grinning at him. "It's beautiful. Oh, I love this." She hugged his arm and went serious for a moment. "Can I just say..., travelling with you..., I love it."

"Me too," he replied, and they started laughing again, and something that was becoming quite common now, they grinned at each other like idiots. "Come on." He grabbed her hand and ran, not from danger, not to find trouble, just for the pure joy of running.

He took his long coat off and placed it on the ground like a blanket, so that they could lie comfortably on the grass. Rose lay there, propped up on her elbows, listening to his new voice, studying his new face as he spoke.

"So, the year five billion, the sun expands, the Earth gets roasted."

"That was our first date," she remembered.

"We had chips," he recalled, after they returned to Earth so that Rose could see that everything was alright. "So anyway, planet gone, all rocks and dust, but the human race lives on, spread out across the stars. Soon as the Earth burns up, oh yeah, they get all nostalgic, big revival movement, but then find this place, same size as the Earth, same air, same orbit, lovely. Call goes out, the humans move in."

"What's the city called?" she asked him.

"New New York."

"Oh, come on." She thought he was joking.

"It is. It's the city of New New York. Strictly speaking, it's the fifteenth New York since the original, so that makes it New New New New New New New New New New New New New New York."

Rose just gazed at him in disbelief. The 'old' him was never this…, light-hearted and seemingly carefree. It was as if the regeneration had removed a burden from his shoulders.

He saw her looking at him. "What?"

"You're so different."

"New New Doctor," he said with a smile and a twinkle in his eyes.

* * *

**TARDIS Medi-Bay.**

"Hold still will you, it won't take long," the Doctor said.

"But it tickles," Rose giggled, as he swept a hand held device over her. "Ooh, it's like someone's whispering something naughty in my ear," she said in a deep, sexy voice.

"Rose...? That is you in there isn't it?" he asked with concern.

"Well deary, I'm sure I've seen her in here somewhere."

"Cassandra, get out of there, right now!"

Rose collapsed into fits of laughter. "It's me…, I'm sorry, I couldn't resist it."

He looked quite worried. "Rose, I could have performed a synaptic retro-fold purge then, it would have turned you into something like your mother!"

Her mouth fell open in horror. "Oh my God, I'm sorry, I didn't realise."

His face slowly went from stern, through mildly amused, to full on grin. "Only joking, there's no such thing," he laughed.

"Ooh you." She slapped his arm playfully. "So is there any lasting damage?"

"No, everything looks fine. You may get some vivid dreams for a while, but nothing scary."

"Well, thank you Doctor," she said with a cheeky smile.

They left the Medi-Bay and headed for the living room to relax in front of the television for the evening.

"Don't forget to phone your mother," he reminded her, with a lopsided smile.

"Oh yeah, thanks." She took out her mobile and speed dialled her mum. "Hi Mum, it's me. What day is it there? I lose track of time in the TARDIS."

"Hi Sweetheart, it's lovely to hear from you. It's the Tuesday Christmas Bank holiday."

"Oh, so it's the same time for us then."

"Can I hear Eastenders in the background?" Jackie asked.

"Yeah, we're just chillin' out in the livin' room."

"Blimey, you've got a livin' room…, hang on, that's the same Eastenders I'm watchin', how'dya do that then?"

"It's like the phone call Mum, the TARDIS streams the program through the Vortex."

"I never realised you could do that, it's a proper home from home, innit. So what have you been up to?"

"Oh, we've been to this amazing planet called New Earth, in the year five billion and twenty three, where we met up with some old friends. Well, one old friend who was a face and one flap of skin who was a real bitch."

"Five billion? Face? Flap of skin? Oh my God, do you know how crazy all that sounds?" Jackie said.

Rose laughed. "I know; it still gives me a buzz every time." They chatted away like mothers and daughters do all over the world, it just happened that Rose wasn't actually on the same world as her mum.

After the call, she continued to watch TV with the Doctor, when a memory from the day's events suddenly popped into her head. Cassandra had snogged the Doctor!

And she'd done it with her lips!

And…, it was bloody brilliant!

* * *

The next morning, Rose awoke in her room, and had a momentary loss of orientation, before she realised that she was in the TARDIS and not in the flat. The Doctor had sat in the armchair in her room and chatted to her until she had fallen asleep. She felt guilty about sleeping while he would stay awake, so he said he would tell her a bedtime story to keep her company until she dozed off. She hoped it would become a regular thing, because she loved it.

He was right about the vivid dreams, the one she recalled, was the one that had woken her up. He was also right when he said 'nothing scary', it was anything but, and she woke feeling aroused and horny.

She actually blushed when she remembered the dream, which involved the Doctor (of course), some dancing (naturally), some kissing (really?), and…, well, let's just say that's what made her blush (blimey). She needed a distraction, and so decided to try out the Olympic sized swimming pool the Doctor had told her about.

She rummaged in the bottom drawer and found her Speedo swimsuit, which was red and Mickey said made her look like a Baywatch Babe. She thought wistfully about Mickey for a moment; he'd be back at work this morning after the Christmas break. She pulled the tight swimsuit on and over her shoulders, 'does he think about me?' she wondered.

She felt guilty that she was here, living the…, not jet-set lifestyle…, it would have to be the space-set lifestyle; whilst he had to labour away in a garage to make a living. She put on a towelling bathrobe, flip-flops on her feet, picked up the large bath towel that she'd remembered to pack this time, and went to find the pool.

The double glass doors opened into a room that would not be out of place in any leisure centre on Earth. She slipped the bath robe off and dropped it on a sun lounger with her towel. Dipping her toe in the water, she found it to be a very comfortable temperature, and walked to the deep end, ready to dive in.

There was a momentary flash of her vivid, erotic dream, which made her blush and shiver. Bringing her arms above her head, she dived into the water and started powering through the water. Next to gymnastics, swimming was her second favourite exercise, and she was a very strong swimmer. She was convinced that swimming at the local baths was the only thing that kept her weight under control, from all the chips that she liked to eat.

The water in the pool seemed odd, as though it wasn't as 'wet' as normal water, if that made sense; it seemed more buoyant and less 'clingy' than usual. It was fantastic to swim in though, and she did lap after lap, until the dream was just a dream, the emotions that it initially evoked were no longer vivid. Now, she decided, it was time for breakfast.

She climbed out of the pool, and found that she wasn't all that wet, it was that odd water again. She wiped the dampness off her skin with the towel and shrugged on the bathrobe, before heading off to the kitchen.

She decided to have some cornflakes with ice cold milk this morning, which was really refreshing. As she munched away, she noticed a piece of paper resting against the retro looking teapot, which was actually very high tech, as it kept the tea hot and fresh, as though it had just been made.

She reached over and read the note. 'Tea in the pot, help yourself' it said. Rose smiled at the thought of him making tea for them both, even though she had to do that very human thing of sleeping. And thinking of 'him', where was he? It was unusually quiet around here this morning. Even though the TARDIS was enormous, you could usually hear noises carrying down the corridors and hallways.

She finished her cornflakes and poured a mug of tea for herself, taking her bowl over to the sink to swill it out before putting it in the dishwasher. She had another reality check, a dishwasher; her mum had never been able to afford a dishwasher. In fact, there were a number of things her mum couldn't afford, and again, she felt a bit guilty about living it up in the TARDIS.

She took her tea back to her room to get dressed, do her hair and makeup, and then be ready for the day's adventure, what ever that may be. Blue denim jeans, pink hoodie and white trainers seemed to be her 'uniform' for adventuring, and she gave herself a grin in the mirror before going to the console room to see where the Doctor was going to take them today.

That was odd; the console room was empty, no legs sticking out from under the console while he tinkered with some unimaginably complex piece of equipment. The time rotor was silent, no grinding wheezing of time and space being bent to the TARDIS's will. There was nothing, only silence

Rose went around to the view screen and switched it on to see if she could see where the Doctor might be. The view screen showed her an ordinary living room, with yellow walls and a seventies feel to it.

"Hmm, I wasn't expecting that," she said.

She walked around the console and started down the ramp, as the door opened and the Doctor stepped inside. He was wearing his long coat and a sad expression.

"Oh, there you are," she said as she met him by the door. "Are you alright?"

"What? Me, oh I'm always alright," he said with a weak smile. "You're up then. Did you sleep well?"

"Er, yeah…, thanks," she said distractedly, blushing slightly at the memory of her dream. "So, where have you been? It looks like somebody's living room on the screen."

"Oh, you looked then? Yes, it's someone's home…, was someone's home…, well, still is someone's home…, but not the mother's, I wasn't able to save her."

Rose reached for his hand and gave a reassuring squeeze. "Come an' have a sit down, you can tell me about it, an' try an' make more sense this time."

He gave her a weak smile, and they set off for the living room, dropping his coat over the coral as he went past. Rose did a quick detour into the kitchen to pick up two mugs of tea, and joined him on the sofa.

"While you were asleep, I had an alert come up on the console, an elemental shade had escaped from the Howling Halls," he told her.

"Sounds like somethin' from Harry Potter," Rose said with a puzzled expression.

He gave a single laugh. "It might as well have been, they are living shadows, the stuff of legends, and nightmares, the Bogeyman, Night Terrors, there are numerous names for them."

"What, those things are real?" Rose said, suddenly concerned.

"Oh yes, but they are safely locked up in the Howling Halls, pockets in the void, like bubbles in reality. Unfortunately, one of the bubbles burst, and the shade appeared in that house. A woman happened to be in the way when the shade materialised, killing her instantly."

"Oh God, that's horrible," Rose said holding his hand again, trying to offer some comfort.

"I managed to save the rest of the family by creating a temporary holding field, and then sealing it back in the Howling."

"Well, that's a relief. It's a shame you couldn't save the woman..., but everything must come to dust..., all things..., everything dies," she said distractedly.

"What did you say?" the Doctor had heard those words before.

"Wha? I don't know, I was just sayin' it wasn't your fault, didn't you tell me that everybody dies eventually?"

He smiled at her. "Yes, that's right, I did."

"An' you've shown me that it's how you live, not how long that's important."

He gave her a proud smile. "Rose Tyler..., you're quite the philosopher."

She smiled back at him. "Thank you, I do my best."

He suddenly switched his mood, in that unpredictable, eccentric way of his, from sad to happy. The dead woman wasn't forgotten, he never forgot the people that he failed, but the sorrow was filed away in that disciplined mind of his.

"So we're in the seventies, let's hang around for a while, soak up the atmosphere, platform shoes, and flared trousers."

"Maybe not then," Rose said.

"Oh, and Top of the Pops is still on the BBC, do you remember Glam Rock…, Punk?" He said eyes wide in expectation.

"Hah! Are you tellin' me you're a Punk Rocker?" Rose asked with a laugh. "You are ain'tcha?"

"You know me, never been much on authority, bit of a rebel, I was born for Punk."

'You know me', he'd said. Did she though, she knew very little about him. "Tell you what, if we're goin' to the seventies, I'm dressin' the part," she said as she stood up. "Be right back." She hurried out of the room, and then her head popped back around the door. "1970's, right?" she asked.

"Yep, late seventies," he confirmed.

She thought about this. "Right, less glam, more punk, got it," she confirmed and disappeared.

While Rose was getting changed, the Doctor was searching through his music collection, pulling out the occasional CD that caught his eye, looking at the sleeve, and then putting it back. He then found one that took his fancy.

"That's more like it," he said with a grin. He put the CD in his pocket and went to the console room.

"What do you think of this? Will it do?" Rose asked as she put her rucksack under the console. She was wearing a denim, dungaree mini dress, with a plum T-shirt.

The Doctor walked around the console, tinkering with an object. He cast an approving glance at his young companion. "In the late 1970s? You'd be better off in a bin bag. Hold on, listen to this."

He started up the CD player on the console. "Ian Dury and the Blockheads, number one in 1979."

"You're a punk," she accused again as she followed him around the console.

"It's good to be a lunatic," he sang along with the music.

"That's what you are, a big old punk with a bit of rockabilly thrown in."

He stopped walking. "Would you like to see him?"

"How'd you mean? In concert?"

"What else is a TARDIS for?" He continued to orbit the console again. "I can take you to the Battle of Trafalgar, the first anti-gravity Olympics, Caesar crossing the Rubicon or Ian Dury at the Top Rank, Sheffield, England, Earth, 21st November, 1979. What do you think?" He stopped by the flight controls.

"Sheffield it is," she said with a beaming smile.

"Hold on tight." He flipped a lever, and the TARDIS lurched into action, causing her to hold on tight, just like he'd said. He started hitting the console with a rubber mallet, to the rhythm of 'Hit me with your rhythm stick.

"Stop!" Rose laughed, and the TARDIS suddenly did, throwing them both to the floor in a fit of laughter.

"1979. Hell of a year," he said as he stood up and pulled Rose to her feet. "China invades Vietnam. The Muppet Movie, love that film." He shrugs his long coat over his shoulders. "Margaret Thatcher..., urgh. Skylab falls to Earth, with a little help from me. Nearly took off my thumb."

He stepped out of the TARDIS, still talking to Rose. "And I like my thumb. I need my thumb. I'm very attached to…."

He hears a number of rifle hammers being pulled back and cocked.

"My thumb," he said, raising his hands in front of a number of soldiers.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The Doctor and Rose hopped off the horse drawn cart by the TARDIS, thanked Dougal, the driver, and walked across the heath land.

"No, but the funny thing is, Queen Victoria did actually suffer a mutation of the blood. It's historical record. She was haemophiliac. They used to call it the Royal Disease. But it's always been a mystery because she didn't inherit it. Her mum didn't have it, her dad didn't have it. It came from nowhere," the Doctor told her.

"What and you're saying that's a wolf bite?"

"Well, maybe haemophilia is just a Victorian euphemism."

"For werewolf?"

"Could be."

"Queen Victoria's a werewolf?"

"Could be. And her children had the Royal Disease. Maybe she gave them a quick nip."

"So, the Royal Family are werewolves?"

"Well, maybe not yet. I mean, a single wolf cell could take a hundred years to mature. Might be ready by, oh, early 21st century?"

"Nah, that's just ridiculous!" Rose said dismissively, and then thought about the Royal Family. "Mind you, Princess Anne…."

"I'll say no more."

Rose thought about it some more. "And if you think about it, they're very private. They plan everything in advance. They could schedule themselves around the moon. We'd never know. And they like hunting!" she said as they stepped into the TARDIS, she was on a roll.

"They love blood sports," she continued as the Doctor walked up the ramp ahead of her and started the time rotor. "Oh my God, they're werewolves!" she laughed in disbelief.

"Hah! And if they aren't at the moment, they will be," he said with a grin.

"And you owe me a tenner," Rose reminded him.

"Ah, now the bet was that YOU could make her say it, and if I recall correctly, which I always do, I said that her husband was protecting her from beyond the grave, and she said, 'Indeed, then you may think on this also, that I am not amused'."

"Yeah, she said it!"

"Yes, but I made her say it, not you, and the bet was definitely for you to make her say it, so I think you'll find that the tenner is mine," he said with a triumphant smile.

"Oh no, no, hang on," she said thinking furiously. "Er…, ah, I actually said, 'I want her to say we are not amused. I bet you five quid I can make her say it'. Now for you to win the bet, she would have had to NOT say it, so I think that's a draw."

"What?" he said incredulously. "Rose Tyler, have you been taking lessons from your mother."

It was Rose's turn to have a satisfied grin. "Yep, I was taught by one of the best, you have to get up really early to get one over on my Mum."

The Doctor shook his head and laughed in resignation. "Okay, it's a draw, where do you want to go as a consolation prize then?"

"Well, Sir Doctor, I seem to remember you promisin' to take me to see Ian Dury, so, are you takin' me to this concert or what?" Rose asked him with a cheeky grin. "I mean, I didn't get dressed up in this 'naked' outfit for nothin'."

"Ah, of course Dame Rose, allow me to escort my wee, naked, timorous, beastie, to an evening of musical entertainment for your delight and delectation." He took her hand in a gentile fashion and bowed.

"Och aye, I'll be oot an' aboot kind sir," she replied with a laugh and did a little curtsey.

The Doctor grimaced. "Nah, still don't do it, please."

He reset the console and started up the time rotor. "Now, if the TARDIS doesn't interfere this time, we might be able to get to the concert." The lights flickered in a way that could only be described as 'huffy', which caused Rose to laugh and stroke the coral strut.

"It's alright girl, the nasty man doesn't mean it." The lights flickered again, this time in a 'thank you' kind of way.

The time rotor stopped, and the Doctor started to shut down the console. Rose walked around to the view screen, and switched it on. The Doctor gave her a questioning look.

"Just checkin' there aren't any soldiers out there with guns, or aliens with ray guns or somethin'," she told him.

He rolled his eyes and headed for the door. "Are you comin' or what?" he said impatiently. "We'll miss the first number if you're not careful."

Having seen that they were in a concert hall, and with the only thing that could be considered dangerous, being a randy roadie, she ran down the ramp with her hair flying around her shoulders to take his waiting hand.

They stepped through the door into the backstage area of the Top Rank Hall in Sheffield.

"Oi…, you two…, where's yer passes?" a man in a high-vis jacket called to them. "You need passes in this area."

"Oh, sorry," the Doctor said, reaching into his inside pocket. "Here you are," he said showing the man his psychic paper in the wallet.

"Ah, you're reporters for NME are ya? DEREK…, we need two reporter passes over here," he shouted to a man standing at a long, trestle table. "Go and see Derek, he'll sort you out."

"Thank you," Rose said with a smile, and then whispered to the Doctor. "Reporters for New Musical Express?"

"Yeah, I know, isn't that brilliant!"

They were escorted around the edge of the stage to an area where other reporters were preparing to watch the performance, and write a commentary. From where she was standing, Rose could see some of the audience, and she could feel the waves of anticipation coming from them.

"I don't know about you, but I would love to be down there with that lot," she told him, pointing to the crowd.

The Doctor looked around the stage, and then at the crowd and smiled. "You're right, come on."

He took her hand and led her into the wings, down some steps and through a door into the auditorium. A man in a high-vis jacket looked at them suspiciously, but they held up their press passes on the lanyards around their necks, and high-vis jacket man let them through. They made their way through the crowd until they were in a good position to see the stage, when the house lights went down, replaced by spot lights on the stage.

The Blockheads started to wander on and pick up their instruments, and the crowd started to cheer and applaud. There were a few random notes as the musicians checked the tuning, and then they started playing a riff from 'Hit me with your rhythm stick' over and over, which got another cheer from the crowd.

A small, unassuming man, with curly dark hair, wearing a white sleeveless T-shirt, dark glasses and white gloves, shuffled on to the stage towards the microphone. He got a deafening cheer from the crowd, and the Doctor and Rose were jumping up and down with excitement with the best of them.

"Good evening Sheffield," he said, with an accent that was both posh, and yet rough at the same time. The crowd whistled and cheered.

"Are you ready for this?" he asked them.

"YES!" they all yelled back.

"I can't hear you," he said in a sing song voice. "I SAID ARE YOU READY FOR THIS?" he yelled.

"YYYEESSSS!" the crowd roared back.

He smiled and started nodding his head to the beat, waiting for the riff to come around. "In the deserts of Sudan…. And the gardens of Japan...," he started singing, and that was it, Rose and the Doctor started swaying to the beat, and never stopped. They were even pogoing to some of the songs, along with everyone else.

When the concert was finally over, Rose hugged the Doctor around the neck. "Thank you for that, it was fantastic," she said, realising that she'd used her 'old' Doctor's favourite expression.

"Wasn't it just," he answered, a big grin on his face.

The adrenalin fuelled horror of an alien werewolf was forgotten, replaced by the adrenalin fuelled excitement of the concert.

"Y'know, we should do this more often," the Doctor said.

"Too right we should," Rose replied enthusiastically.

"And not just on this planet or in this century."

"Whatcha got in mind?"

"Motzart, Vienna, in the eighteenth century. Balhoon opera, in the five billions, mind you, that's a bit of an acquired taste, oh, and one all day concert that changed the planet Earth, it was the first global event that brought everyone together."

"Which century was that then?" she asked.

He gave her that 'dribbled down her T-shirt' look. "Yours of course, 13th July 1985, at noon, in Wembley stadium, 72,000 people came together for an unprecedented event. At around two o'clock at the John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 100,000 people joined them in a combined, satellite broadcast."

Rose thought about this. "1985, I was two," she said, and then realised what he was talking about. "Live Aid? You mean the Live Aid concert?"

"Yep, how's about making it 72,002, and 100,002?"

Rose squealed with delight and hugged him again; he returned the hug and swung her around.

That night, Rose slept well, having been exhausted by the day's events. The Doctor had sat in her chair again and told her another tale of his adventures before he met her. She'd had another vivid dream, which involved her kissing the Doctor when he had big ears and a daft face. It was so romantic, as a soft golden light, the sort that you see in a romantic movie or an advert for chocolates surrounded them.

The next day, the Doctor took Rose to Vienna in 1874, where she enjoyed dressing in the period costume. She had been to the TARDIS clothing department, and dressed in a low cut, stiff-bodiced, blue silk mantua. She was the picture of elegance as they spent their time exploring the beautiful city.

In the evening, they made their way to the Mehlgrube restaurant, a first rate establishment, which served exquisite food. During the meal, a young couple entered the restaurant, and seemed to be very popular. The man wore a white and gold justaucorps, jacket, and breeches, whilst the woman wore a cream gown; similar in style to the one Rose was wearing.

When Rose looked at the Doctor to ask if he knew who they were, she saw a smile of anticipation on his lips. "Who are those two then?" she asked quietly as she leaned towards him.

"That Rose, is Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, and his wife Constanze, and he's going to be performing one of his concertos in the ballroom."

Rose's mouth fell open. "Oh my God, y'mean that's him…, THE Mozart?"

"Yep, music superstar of his day, a genius. C'mon, eat up and we'll go and get a good seat."

On their way to the ballroom, they stopped at his table. "Mr Mozart, I'm the Doctor, and this is my companion, Rose, I'd just like to say that we're SO looking forward to your performance this evening," the Doctor said.

Mozart stood and nodded politely. "Than you sir, ma'am, I shall try my best to live up to your expectation."

The Doctor gave a slight bow, and Rose bobbed a curtsey, before going through to the ballroom, and an evening of music she would never forget.

They went to Balhoon one day, and the Doctor was right, Balhoon opera was definitely an acquired taste, also, Rose ran out of saliva, what with all the spitting of approval.

At the end of the week, they found themselves on the multicultural planet of Karkinos, a busy, teeming metropolis of a planet, which was a sort of galactic Constantinople. One of the moons of Karkinos was a captured hollow asteroid, the shape of which, gave the interior outstanding acoustics, and performers from all over the galaxy came to give sell out concerts.

Today was an all day, eclectic festival of music, from a number of performers, and a variety of different styles. There was a carnival atmosphere inside the arena, and Rose had a momentary feeling of motion sickness as she entered the auditorium and looked up.

In the middle of the asteroid, was a floating stage that slowly rotated in all three planes. That was okay (sort of), but when she looked beyond that to the roof, half a kilometre away, she saw people walking about, upside down. And when you looked to the curving walls, there were people standing sideways.

There were a number of performers there, jugglers, magicians, comedians and contortionists. There were market stalls selling trinkets, official concert memorabilia, and fast food outlets providing a mind boggling range of snacks and drinks.

Young alien children were running past, holding sticks of smoking food. Rose and the Doctor were walking in the direction that the children were coming from, when they saw a small, blue alien woman, about a metre tall, with large round eyes and hair like a porcupine.

Rose smiled at the woman, who looked like she had a bout of indigestion, before she roared a belch, and flames shot out of her mouth. Rose squealed in alarm, and a number of children laughed and held up sticks of food to be cooked.

They heard many different styles of music, some rhythmic and hypnotic, others that made your teeth rattle, and others still that left you breathless, either with the sheer force of it, or the sheer beauty of it. When the festival was over, they went back to the TARDIS and the Doctor put his key in the door.

"Excuse me," a voice called out behind them, and they turned around to see who had called them.

They both craned their necks to look up at the eight foot tall crayfish that was standing in front of them. She had six legs but only stood on four. Her segmented body was arched backwards so that her two front legs were held up and out like arms, one of them ending in a huge knobbled claw. She had a head of sorts with four black bead-like eyes, and a gaping hole in the centre of her face, filled with row upon row of tiny sharp jagged teeth, surrounded by waving feelers that seemed to claw at the air

"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought you were someone else," the young, female Karkinian said.

The Doctor furrowed his brow. "Ali, is that you?"

The knobbled claw clacked in suspicion, and her feelers twitched. "Do I know you? Because I knew a man once, who owned a box like this, is he inside? He calls himself the Doctor."

"That's me, Ali, I'm the Doctor, and this is Rose," he said with a grin.

"Rose, Rose Tyler?" her voice was full of disbelief. "You went back for her."

Rose's mouth fell open. "Wha, you know me? I think I'd have remembered meeting you before."

"Then you really are the Doctor," she said. "You've changed."

"Yep, why don't you come in and I'll tell you all about it."

The Doctor explained to Rose how he'd met Ali after leaving her in that alley with Mickey. It was Ali that convinced him to go back and ask her again. They then told Ali about their adventures, and how the Doctor had regenerated. Rose was amazed at how this alien girl, reminded her so much of herself (when you got past the fact that she looked like a cross between a cockroach and a crayfish). She was brave, adventurous, and had a wicked sense of humour.

After catching up with everything that had happened to each other, Ali realised that her family would be looking for her, and that it was time for her to go. They said their goodbyes, and Ali left, calling to her parents and siblings, who they could see standing on a wall across the arena. The Karkinians stood and watched as the magical blue box slowly disappeared.

Rose awoke one morning and padded into the kitchen in her pyjamas to prepare breakfast, only to find waffles waiting for her, along with a jar of maple syrup. The Doctor was putting a large picnic together for them that fitted into a shoulder bag that was far too small for it all.

"That'sh an awful lot of food," Rose said through a mouthful of waffle.

"Well, we are going to a sixteen hour concert; we might get a bit peckish."

"Wha? y'mean we're doin' Live Aid today?" she asked with excitement. "What should I wear?"

"It's hot and sunny, so something summery."

"Right, shorts, and vest top," she said, as she finished the waffles and went back to her room to get dressed.

When she came into the console room, she was wearing denim shorts, white trainers, and a white vest top. The Doctor was wearing his blue, pinstriped trousers, red converse, and a dark blue T-shirt; it was one of those rare occasions where he wasn't wearing a shirt and jacket.

The TARDIS landed in a staff area of Wembley Arena, where they could mix with the crowds, and make their way into the arena, where the Coldstream Guards band where opening with the 'Royal Salute' of, 'God Save the Queen'.

The irony of this wasn't lost on the Doctor and Rose, who had just been knighted (and exiled), and laughed when they looked at each other. But they sang along with the rest of the audience, cheering and applauding when the band finished.

They then watched Francis Rossi, Rick Parfitt, Alan Lancaster, and Pete Kircher walk on stage and start playing.

"Ah here we are and here we are and here we go-o-oh, all aboard and we're hitting the road, here we go-oh, rockin' all over the world."

"Oh, this is unbelievable," Rose, said, beaming a smile at him. It was the start of sixteen hours of partying. At ten o'clock, the Wembly concert ended with Band Aid and 'Do They Know It's Christmas?', which in the middle of a hot July night, was an odd question. They made their way to the TARDIS to have supper in the kitchen before jumping over to the John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, to catch Hall and Oates performing their set.

After watching rock royalty perform their pieces, it came time for USA for Africa to sing 'We Are the World', to end the 'Live Aid' phenomenon. Hand in hand, the Doctor and Rose slowly made their way back to the TARDIS, exhausted after their marathon concert.

"Y'know, I feel a bit guilty about not buyin' a ticket. I mean, the whole thing was to help people who are starvin'," Rose said, resting her weary head on his shoulder.

"Don't be, we've saved the planet on more than one occasion, and will probably save it again in the future. I think two tickets out of 172,000 is payment for all our hard work."

"Mmmm, I suppose when you look at it like that…."

The Doctor put the key in the lock and opened the door for Rose to enter. He followed her up the ramp, past the console and into the corridor beyond. Rose went past the kitchen and straight to her bedroom door.

"If ya don't mind, I'm goin' straight to bed," she said.

"No, I'm going to bed myself, so I'll see you in the morning."

"Oh, right," she said, surprised by his admission that he needed sleep, and disappointed that he wasn't going to tell her a story. "Thanks again for a brilliant day. Goodnight."

Lying in bed, Rose was thinking about the last few days. She had found out a lot about the Doctor's musical tastes, and she hoped that she would soon find out more about the man she loved to travel with, the man she loved to be with, the man she loved...


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes: If you check out the car chase on youtube, at 1 minute 10 seconds check out the couple on the right of the screen. I would like to think it was them.**

**Chapter 4**

**Turin, Italy.**

**1969.**

"Okay, so why are we in Turin in the late 1960's," Rose asked the Doctor, having only just got back from Rome in the 120's, where she'd been turned into a statue.

"An' why are we lookin' like a business man and his secretary?" Rose asked him. She was wearing an orange, two piece suit of a jacket and knee length skirt, and black shoes, and the Doctor was wearing a light grey suit with a white, open necked shirt and black shoes.

"You'll see," he said mysteriously. "Just keep your eyes open and I think you might recognised some people..., and some cars," he said, without trying to give too much away.

A man with a clipboard had directed them to a table next to a magazine stand, outside a restaurant in the Galleria San Federico, which Rose thought was a bit odd, but put it down to how the Italians did things around here. She noticed that there were a number of areas roped off, and was that a film crew down at the end of the Galleria?

She was just about to ask the Doctor what was going on, when she heard the roar of three car engines echoing in the covered Galleria. The Doctor gave her an excited grin, before turning around to look at a red Mini Cooper speeding down the pedestrian Galleria, with a white and blue Mini, close on its tail.

They leapt to their feet and stood back as the cars drove past, and took the corner to their left.

"What the…," Rose said as they sped by.

"CUT!" someone shouted at the end of the Galleria. "That's a wrap, thank you everybody."

Rose laughed. "Oh my God, have we just been in…?"

"The Italian Job? Yep. 'You're only supposed to…," he started to say.

"... Blow the bloody doors off," she finished with laughter.

"It's a classic, one of the best car chase sequences ever filmed," he said with a grin. "And one of my favourites."

"I don't believe it…, the Italian Job, THE Italian Job…. I'm in the Italian Job," she said, trying to comprehend it all. "So is this a change of timeline events thing, or have I always been in the film?"

"Er, nope…, and yep," he said cheekily.

"So all the years that I've watched that film, I've been watchin' myself?"

"Yep, and me of course," he reminded her.

She grabbed his hand. "C'mon, you're gonna show me in the TARDIS." She needed to watch the film and see if she could spot them.

In the TARDIS living room, they watched the film on the large, wall mounted TV, drinking Coke, and eating popcorn, as though they were on a date in a cinema.

"Here it comes," the Doctor said. "Get ready…, there!"

Rose squealed with laughter, hit the rewind, and watched it again…, and again…, and in slow motion. "That is unbelievable; I've watched that film with Mum loads of times and never spotted that before."

"Why would y…, hang on, your mum?"

"Yeah, it's one of her favourite films."

The Doctor rubbed the back of his neck. "Blimey, who'd have thought it, me, and your mum having something in common?"

Rose rolled her eyes at him and gave him her teasing, tongue through the teeth smile. "You already have…, me."

They watched the end of the film where Michael Caine says, 'Hang on lads…, I've got a great idea', and Rose looked at the Doctor. "Can you take me home?" she asked him. "I've just got to show Mum this."

He smiled at her. "Yeah, okay." Any chance to show off to Jackie Tyler.

Rose phoned her mum to tell her that she was coming home, and that she'd got something to show her. When she hung up the call, almost immediately, it started to ring, and the caller display showed it was Mickey.

"Hiya Mickey, how's it goin'?"

"Rose, Babe, good to hear your voice…, is the Doctor there?" He knew it was a stupid question as soon as he asked it.

"Yeah, hang on, I'll put him on." She handed him the phone.

"Mickey Boy, what can I do for you?" the Doctor asked, waggling his eyebrows at Rose.

"Hey, Doctor, I've got a mystery here that I think might be right up your street."

**48 Bucknell House.**

**Powell Estate, Peckham.**

**April 2007.**

Rose let herself into the flat with her key and dropped her rucksack of dirty washing in the hallway. "Mum, we're back," she called out.

Oh Sweetheart, I was so pleased when you phoned and said you were comin'." She hugged Rose and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "All that travellin' seems to agree with ya, yer look great. How was ancient Rome, did ya find the bloke who did yer statue? Have ya been havin' a good time, 'as he been keepin' yer outta danger?" she rattled on, giving the Doctor a questioning look.

"We've been havin' a great time Mum, that's partly why we're here," she replied, moving into the living room.

"Hello Babe," Mickey said, unsure of the reaction he'd get.

Rose saw the uncertainty in his expression, and felt guilty that she'd reduced him to this. They may no longer be a couple, but they were still best mates.

Rose went over and gave him a big, reassuring hug. "Hiya Mickey, how are ya?"

"I'm good thanks, you look pretty good yerself."

The Doctor squeezed past Jackie, who was still giving him a disapproving look (although it wasn't as hostile as it used to be), and sat down on the sofa.

"So Sweetheart, what was it that you wanted to show me, you sounded all excited on the phone." Jackie was scanning her finger looking for a tell tale engagement ring.

"Oh, you are gonna love this, it's been under our noses for years. Have ya still got the video with 'The Italian Job' on it?"

Jackie mentally breathed a sigh of relief, no alien wedding then, but then became puzzled by her question. "Er, yeah, it's in the draw under the video," she told her.

"Great, we want to show you somethin' in the film," she said as she rummaged on her hands and knees in the draw. She found one labelled, 'Rose - Dirty Dancing', and another, 'Mum - Cliff in Concert - DO NOT ERASE'. She then found the one she was looking for, 'Mum - Italian Job - DO NOT ERASE'.

She put it in the video and pressed play.

"If we're watchin' a film, I'll get some beers out the fridge," Mickey said, and went into the kitchen.

"Ooh, reach some of the crisps, Doritos, and those cheesy nibble things as well Love," Jackie called through the serving hatch. Mickey came back with a four pack of beer that he kept in Jackie's fridge for when he called around to see her and catch up on any news from Rose.

They watched the film, singing 'we're the self preservation society', each time the tune was played. They got to the part where the Mini Coopers were loaded with the gold bullion in the Palazzo Madama and driven away.

"It's comin' up," Rose told them. "Watch closely."

The cars drove along the Palazzo Carignano down the steps, and along the Galleria dell'Industria.

"Here it comes," Rose said excitedly.

One minute and ten seconds into the chase, the cars sped down the Galleria San Federico, the red Mini leading the way. Before it turned left, a couple on the right of the screen stood up and let the cars zoom past.

"THERE! Did you see it?" Rose asked.

"See what? Mickey asked.

"Oh my God," Jackie said, she'd spotted the pair of them as the Mini shot past them. She used the remote to search back and play it frame by frame. "Is that really you?" she asked.

"Wha? That's you innit?" Mickey asked, open mouthed.

"Nah, it's Rose alright," Jackie said. "But the bloke in the film's got nicely combed hair."

"Oi, in the room," the Doctor said.

"Well, look at that bird's nest on yer head," she said with a smirk.

"Mum!" Rose said in his defence.

"So you actually went back to when they were makin it, and got yerself in the film?" Mickey said.

"Yeah," they both said together, nodding their heads enthusiastically. "An' you've always been in it then?"

"Yeah."

"Bloody 'ell," is all he could manage to say, as he tried to get his head around it.

They finished watching the film as Rose told them about Turin, and how they'd gone to look at the film locations. She also told them about the last time they had seen her in the British Museum, when Mickey had found the statue Fortuna, which had been modelled on her.

She laughed when she told them that it was the Doctor who had sculpted the statue from memory, leaving Mickey completely gobsmacked. Jackie on the other hand, being her mum and having seen the detail in the statue, was concerned that he knew her body in that much detail. Eventually, all the beer and the nibbles were gone, and Jackie looked over at Rose.

"Will you be stayin' over tonight you two?" she asked them, in a way that said 'please stay for a bit longer'.

Rose looked over at the Doctor. "I'll ask the designated driver."

The Doctor smiled at her. "Yeah, go on, Mickey wanted to show me something on the internet, and I can do some maintenance in the TARDIS." He knew that they needed some mother and daughter time together. "I'll see you in the morning."

He stood up and headed for the door, and Mickey stood ready to follow him. He turned back to look at Rose. "It's been great seein' ya again Babe,"

Rose stood up and gave him a hug. "Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?"

As Mickey and the Doctor walked across the courtyard, the Doctor asked him what mystery was right up his street.

"Well, since Rose took up with ya, I've been followin' the conspiracy websites, an' lookin' for anythin' out of the ordinary."

The Doctor looked at him with a raised, questioning eyebrow.

"No offense or anythin', but yer gotta admit, weird shit happens around ya."

The Doctor laughed in agreement. "Yeah, I can't argue with that, so, what have you got?" he asked as they stood outside the TARDIS.

"Well, there's this school, Deffry Vale High School, oh, and there was a load of UFO sightin's first." The Doctor gave him the 'dribbled down the shirt' look.

"Okay, so, anyway, the school got a new headmaster, new teachin' staff, an' the academic achievements went through the roof."

"So? He's a good headmaster," the Doctor said.

"Ah, but the kids are postin' all sorts of complex stuff on the web sites, it's like they suddenly became professors or somethin'."

"Really?" That got the Doctor's attention. "How's about you come in and show me."

* * *

It was past midnight, when the Doctor posted an envelope through the letterbox of an ordinary looking house, in an ordinary looking street. Mickey was standing at the end of the drive, keeping watch in case anyone thought they were up to no good…, which they weren't…, well…

"So, that was a winnin' lottery ticket for this Saturday?" Mickey asked him in a stage whisper.

"Yep! That science teacher is going to hand in her notice on Monday, and I'll be appointed new physics teacher at Deffry Vale High School on Tuesday.

"Can ya get me one of those tickets?" Mickey asked him seriously.

"No!" was the simple reply.

"But it was my quid that bought that ticket," Mickey reminded him.

"And the students of Deffry Vale High School will be very grateful to you. There's a higher purpose here, it's not just about personal gain."

"But I could really use a lottery ticket."

"Well go and buy one then."

"No, I mean a winning one."

"Well, go and buy one, and choose the winning numbers."

"Which are?"

"You'll find that out tomorrow night, won't you?"

"Oh man, you're impossible."

The Doctor gently patted his cheek and smiled. "Now you're getting it. In the morning, I need you to go to the employment exchange and pick up an application form for the position of dinner lady at the school."

"You mean Job Centre..., hang on, did you say dinner lady?" Mickey asked, knowing what was coming next.

"Yeah, I need Rose on the inside with me."

Mickey had a lopsided grin. "Oh man, she's gonna love ya for that."

"Nah, she'll be fine, go and get some sleep, I'll see you in the morning."

* * *

"You want me to do what?" Rose asked him incredulously, while Jackie was in fits of laughter; and Mickey had his 'I told you so' smirk on his face.

"I need an agent on the inside; a dinner lady is a perfect cover."

"What, while you swan around as a teacher?"

"I have to assess the student's academic level, and I need someone to watch the kitchens, if the children are having their brain power boosted, it's probably going to be an additive in the food or drinks."

Rose 'hmphed' at him.

"C'mon Rose," he pleaded. "The children may be in danger here, and it'll only be a couple of hours a day, for a couple of days…, and you do have experience of working in a kitchen."

"What experience?" Jackie asked.

"Er, nothin' Mum, it was just an adventure we had a while ago." She knew the Doctor was referring to Justica, where they'd been thrown in prison, and Rose had been put to work in the kitchens.

"And you get to stay home with your mum for a few days and catch up with your friends," he said, trying to add enticements.

Rose thought about what he'd said, if the children were in danger, a couple of days working in the kitchens was the least she could do to keep them safe.

"Okay, for the kids, an' only for a couple of days, yeah?"

The Doctor pulled her into a hug. "That's my girl."

Rose returned the hug. Yes, she thought, she was his girl.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes: In the episodes 'School Reunion' and 'The Girl In The Fireplace', the Doctor seems very insensitive to Rose and a bit out of character. This chapter is my attempt at an explanation for that, based on careful scrutiny of the episodes.**

**Chapter 5**

Sarah Jane had driven her car to Belle Vue Park, where she saw the TARDIS standing inconspicuously on a path, next to a hedge. A now familiar figure, wearing a brown pinstriped suit stepped out.

"Cup of tea?" he asked. He stepped aside and let her walk inside.

"You've redecorated," she said, looking around.

"Do you like it?" Her approval meant a lot to him, even after all these years.

"Oh..., I..., I do. Yeah..., I preferred it as it was, but er..., yeah. It'll do.

"I love it," Rose said with a beaming smile.

"Hey, you what's forty seven times three hundred and sixty nine?" Sarah Jane asked her.

"No idea. It's gone now. The oil's faded."

"But you're still clever…, more than a match for him," Sarah Jane said, nodding her head sideways in the Doctor's direction.

"You and me both," Rose told her. She turned towards the console. "Doctor?"

"Um, we're about to head off..., but you could come with us," he said smiling at her.

She shook her head. "No…, I can't do this anymore. Besides, I've got a much bigger adventure ahead. Time I stopped waiting for you and found a life of my own." Both the Doctor and Rose looked disappointed.

"Can I come," a quiet voice asked from behind them, which left an awkward silence. "No, not with you," Mickey said, pointing at Sarah Jane. "I mean with you," he asked, looking at the Doctor. "Because I'm not the tin dog, and I want to see what's out there."

Rose mouthed 'no' to the Doctor and Sarah Jane saw it. Oh dear, there were some unresolved issues between Rose and Mickey.

"Oh go on Doctor, Sarah Jane Smith, a Mickey Smith, you need a Smith on board."

"Okay then, I could do with a laugh."

Mickey smiled. "Rose..., is that okay?"

"No, great," she lied. "Why not?"

Sarah Jane was watching Rose; she had a face like a petulant teenager. She realised that Rose and the Doctor had issues that hadn't even been raised yet; you could cut the atmosphere with a knife. It was probably best if she left them to sort out their own problems.

"Well, I'd better go then," she said, gently taking Rose's arm and leading her to the handrail, sensing that Rose wanted to speak to her, and she was right. For the first time since meeting the Doctor, Rose was uncertain of her future with him.

She was recalling a conversation they'd had as they were leaving a coffee shop, and she'd asked him how many other people had travelled with him. Meeting Sarah Jane had been a reality check for her.

"Does it matter?" he'd said sharply.

"Yeah, it does, if I'm just the last in a long line…."

The Doctor had stopped and turned to face her. "As opposed to what?"

That had stunned her as though he'd slapped her in the face. "I thought you and me were..., I obviously got it wrong. I've been to the year five billion, right, but this...? Now this is really seein' the future. You just leave us behind…. Is that what you're going to do to me?"

"No," he'd said quickly. "Not to you..."

"But Sarah Jane...? You were that close to her once, an' now…, you never even mention her…, why not?"

And then he'd told her, he'd REALLY told her. "I don't age. I regenerate…. But humans decay…. You wither and you die," he'd said, his voice tinged with anger. "Imagine watching that happen to someone who you..." He'd stopped himself from finishing that sentence.

"What, Doctor?" she'd pressed, but, as usual, he'd changed the direction of the conversation.

"You can spend the rest of your life with me," he'd told her, and her heart had soared, it was just what she'd wanted to hear, but then he'd brought her down with a crash. 'But I can't spend the rest of mine with you…. I have to live on…. Alone….. That's the curse of the Time Lords."

Rose came out of her memories. "What do I do?" Rose asked her quietly, glancing over her shoulder at the Doctor. "Do I stay with him?"

"Yes," she replied without hesitation. "Some things are worth getting your heart broken for." She pulled Rose into a motherly hug, she knew how Rose felt, and she knew some of what was in store for her.

"Find me," she said kindly. "If you need to..., one day…, find me." She didn't need to say, 'when it all goes wrong, and you find yourself on your own'.

Without another word, she turned and walked out of the TARDIS, the Doctor followed her out to say goodbye.

"If you don't want me to come, I'll go," Mickey said. "If it's gonna make things awkward for ya."

Rose had her back to him, leaning with her arm against the coral. "No, its okay," she said unconvincingly, turning to face him. "If he can change his face, he can change his mind."

Mickey gave a single laugh, she still didn't know that the Doctor, the 'old' Doctor, had asked him to come with them and he'd said no, he wasn't ready then.

"Only, I know what you're goin' through." Rose gave him a defiant, questioning look. "The uncertainty, the insecurity, I've been there and got more than one T-shirt."

And he did know what she was going through, what with Jimmy Stone, and then the Doctor, he had never known where he stood with Rose, not really.

With those words of friendship and comfort, Rose realised that she'd been acting like a pubescent teenager. The Doctor had lived for over nine hundred years; of course he'd had other travelling companions, why should she be anything special?

But there was that feeling she got when she held his hand, was she imagining it, or was it real? Then there was the Dalek, 'what use are emotions if you will not save the woman you love?' it had said. She thought it was goading him, but she hoped the cold blooded killing machine had seen something in the Doctor that she wanted to be there.

'Imagine watching that happen to someone who you...' was he going to say loved? Had he watched someone he loved grow old and die, or was it that he didn't want to watch it happen to her?

The Doctor came back into the TARDIS and walked up to the console. "Right then, where next?" he said with a cheery smile, the preceding awkwardness forgotten or just ignored. He powered up the console and started the time rotor, sending them into the Vortex.

"So, Mickey Boy, the whole of time and space, where do you want to go first?" the Doctor asked him.

"Er, I don't know," he said, struggling to think of somewhere that he wanted to go. He looked over to Rose. "Whatcha think Babe, where should we go?"

He saw the look on Rose's face, and knew that she needed to talk to the Doctor alone; it was a human thing, because the Doctor was clueless. The TARDIS did a great job of translating languages, even adding inflections and syntax, but it couldn't translate the non verbal body language.

Mickey was human, and he'd been Rose's boyfriend for long enough to know that sometimes, when she was saying one thing, she was actually meaning the opposite. The Doctor on the other hand, was an alien, and even with all the time he'd spent around humans, he hadn't mastered the art of body language.

"Tell ya what..., I'll go an' have a think about it. Do yer have any beer on board Doc?" Mickey said.

Rose realised that Mickey was giving her some space with the Doctor and smiled at him gratefully, she really didn't deserve a friend like him. "Yeah, there's some cans in the fridge in the kitchen. Through there and second on the right."

Mickey nodded and went to find a beer, and Rose turned to face the Doctor, who was concentrating on the console.

"So…, Sarah Jane," she said. He turned to look at her and his face became an impassive mask. "Why did she leave, did you send her away because you couldn't bear to see her grow old?"

He straightened up and took a deep breath. "No, it was nothing like that Rose. Sarah Jane had threatened to leave after a difficult adventure, I think it was to shake me up a bit and pay more attention to her."

"Really?" Rose said sarcastically.

The Doctor missed the sarcasm. "Yes, you humans are SO high maintenance. But then I had a summons from the Time Lords to return home. Back then, the Time Lords were very insular, almost xenophobic, which is why I was seen as a rebel, because I always loved to meet foreigners."

Rose could see where this was going now. "So Sarah Jane wasn't allowed to go with you."

"No, I dropped her off at her home…, well, I dropped her off near her home…, well, it was in the British Isles anyway."

Even with all the uncertainty she was feeling at the moment, Rose couldn't help herself from snorting a laugh, she just loved his runaway gob.

"We kept bumping into each other, before and after she'd left," he said and Rose gave him a puzzled look. "It's a time travelling thing, but she never came back to the TARDIS," he said sadly.

Rose could see by his expression, and the tone of his voice, that he hadn't just dumped Sarah Jane, he had missed her, that was obvious. It was time to find out where she stood with him, and she was reluctant to ask the next question, because the answer could change her life forever, and forever was a very long time.

"Did you mean it, when you said I could spend the rest of my life with you, or were or just sayin' that to make a point?"

"Well, I was making a point," he started, and Rose's face fell. "But I also said that I would love you to come with me, and I meant it."

"Really?" she asked uncertainly, but feeling relieved. "An' what about when I get all old and wrinkly, will you still want me around then?"

He smiled at her. "You are Rose Tyler, and you will always be Rose Tyler, just as I will always be the Doctor," he said, holding out his arms for her. She walked forwards and accepted his reassuring hug. "But if you turn into anything like your mother, I'll be throwing you out long before then," he said with a laugh.

Rose laughed with him, that comment told her that he wouldn't throw her out, no matter what.

Mickey returned from the kitchen, swigging from a can of beer, and they released the hug quickly, turning towards him.

"Well?" Rose asked.

"Do you have a 'lucky dip', y'know, like a magical mystery tour setting?" Mickey said with a smile.

The Doctor beamed at him. "A mystery tour, brilliant, my favourite kind," he said, and twiddled a few settings without looking. "Here we go then." He slapped a lever down and they felt the TARDIS land. "Come on then, it's all out there waiting for us, let's have a look," he said as he walked down the ramp.

Mickey followed him through the doors, with Rose following behind.

"It's a spaceship. Brilliant! I got a spaceship on my first go," he said, as though he'd been on a fairground ride.

Rose looked around the messy chamber. "It looks kind of abandoned. Anyone on board?"

"Nah, nothing here," the Doctor said with his hands in his pockets. "Well, nothing dangerous…, well, not that dangerous…. You know what...; I'll just have a quick scan..., in case there's anything dangerous." He moved to a control console and examined the controls.

"So, what's the date, how far we gone?" Rose asked him with an expectant smile.

"About three thousand years into your future, give or take." He pulled up a lever, which emitted a blue light, and twisted it to lock it in place. Parts of the ceiling started to slide away from each other.

"Fifty first century…, Diagmar Cluster, you're a long way from home, Mickey…, two and a half galaxies.

Rose put her hands on Mickey's shoulders. "Mickey Smith, meet the universe," she said, enjoying showing off, she understood now why the Doctor enjoyed showing her new things. "See anything you like?"

"It's so realistic!" he said with an excited laugh, looking through a window. He'd only ever seen this stuff as a special effect in films, and now, here he was, out among the stars, for real!

"Dear me, had some cowboys in here…, got a ton of repair work going on," he said, rummaging about in the discarded equipment. He looked at a display screen. "Now that's odd…, look at that…, all the warp engines are going…, full capacity. There's enough power running through this ship to punch a hole in the universe, but we're not moving. He looked through the ceiling observation window. "So where's all that power going?"

"Where'd all the crew go?" Rose asked.

"Good question," he said, checking more of the readouts. "No life readings on board."

"Well, we're in deep space, they didn't just nip out for a quick fag," Rose observed.

"No, I've checked all the smoking pods…. Can you smell that?" the Doctor said.

"Yeah…, someone's cooking," Rose replied.

"Sunday roast…, definitely," Mickey said.

The Doctor looked concerned, no life forms on board, the smell of cooking meat, he'd wondered what had happened to the crew, and now he was sure he didn't want to know the answer.

* * *

"What happened? Where did the time window go? How's he going to get back?" Mickey asked. Rose didn't answer, what could she say? A tear trickled down her cheek. "We can't fly the TARDIS without him. How's he going to get back?" They were trapped on board a deserted space ship, with a time machine they couldn't fly.

As if Rose didn't have enough insecurities about meeting Sarah Jane, and the Doctor's reaction to seeing her again, his reaction to Madame de Pompadour, and his obvious infatuation with her, was a real slap in the face.

Without any apparent thought to her or Mickey, he had smashed through a time portal, leaving himself trapped in the eighteenth century, and them in the fifty first, all to save the mistress of the King of France, a mistress! Not even a queen, but a…, a tart!

"He'll find a way back," Rose said, trying to convince herself as much as Mickey. "He always finds a way."

"An' if he doesn't?"

"He will!" Rose shot back quickly. She was angry at him for just running off to save that tart, but her faith in him was absolute, she never doubted him.

"So what do we do then?" Mickey asked, is there a radio on the TARDIS or somethin', so that we can contact him?" He'd seen Star Trek, he knew about communicators and scanners.

"Not that I know of…, maybe there's somethin' here that we can use," she said, clearing the clutter off the console.

"How long do we wait then?" Mickey asked as they rummaged through the wreckage of the controls."

What kind of a dumb question was that? They were stuck there until the Doctor came back, but she remembered that time passed differently on the other side of the portal.

"Time passed at a different rate through the fireplace, hopefully it shouldn't take him too long to figure out a way back," she said, again, trying to convince herself that her faith in him was well founded.

They spent a few hours exploring the derelict ship, always looking for anything that may be a way to re-establish a link with eighteenth century France.

"C'mon Babe," Mickey said eventually. "Let's go grab somethin' to eat in the TARDIS." His initial enthusiasm for being in space, had been replaced by a fear that this was going to be the rest of his life. Mind you, being stuck here with Rose, no other blokes around, a TARDIS full of the comforts of home…, it could be worse.

Rose programmed the food replicator to produce two plates of chilli con carne, while Mickey grabbed a couple of beers from the fridge and a couple of glasses from the cupboard. She brought the food over to the table, and sat opposite Mickey.

"So, how much food do we have on board then?" Mickey asked.

"I dunno really, the Doctor said that the food replicator can recombine individual atoms and molecules into food items. I suppose it's infinite," she said.

"So we won't starve then."

"Mickey, he's comin' back."

"Yeah, you said, I'm just tryin' to plan for any contingency…, y'know, a bit of crisis management."

Actually, she couldn't argue with that, they didn't know how long it would take him to get back.

They finished their meal and Rose put the plates, glasses, and cutlery in the dishwasher, before heading back to the console room, and out into the spaceship to see if there was any progress on the Doctor getting back.

Rose stepped through the doors and was immediately grabbed into a hug by the Doctor who had just run back from the fireplace.

"Oh my God," she squealed. "You did it, you made it back!" she said with relief, her anger and insecurities forgotten for the moment.

"How long did you wait?" he asked her as he swung her from side to side.

"Five and a half hours," she laughed.

"Great. Always wait five and a half hours," he said excitedly.

He thought about hugging Mickey, but they settled on a handshake.

"Where've you been?" Rose asked him.

"Explain later…. Into the TARDIS, be with you in a sec."

He ran back to the fireplace, and suddenly, Rose's insecurity returned with a vengeance. He was calling her name through the fireplace, and she watched with a kind of resigned acceptance, as he activated the turntable, taking him back again to eighteenth century France, and into the arms of the King's mistress.

She looked away from the fireplace, and silently stepped through the door into the TARDIS. She'd been a fool, she thought to herself, what would a Time Lord want with a common shop girl, when he could have a sophisticated socialite from eighteenth century France? Even if she was just a common tart?

Reinette was a beautiful, sophisticated, mature, experienced woman, what did the Doctor say? 'One of the most accomplished women who ever lived', he was obviously a fan. And what was she? A common, immature girl from a council estate, with a bronze medal in gymnastics. How could she compete with that?

Mickey was standing by the console, watching Rose walking up the ramp, her face showing the sadness that she was feeling. He wanted to say things to comfort her and reassure her, but he was a bloke, and he didn't really know what to say.

"Gone again 'as he?" is all he could think of, and Rose nodded.

They stood there silently by the console when they heard the door open and close slowly, the earlier, fiery enthusiasm, replaced with a resigned sadness, visible in his hunched shoulders and heavy steps.

"Why her?" Rose asked, trying to assess his mood. "Why did they think they could repair the ship with the head of Madame de Pompadour?"

"We'll probably never know…, there was massive damage in the computer memory banks, it probably got confused," he said as he walked up the ramp. "The TARDIS can close down the time windows now the droids are gone…, should stop it causing any more trouble." He said as he started to activate the console.

"Are you alright?" She asked quietly, studying his face.

"I'm always all right." He said a bit too quickly, continuing to busy himself with the console. Rose just stood and watched him.

Mickey took her hand and gently tugged her away. "Come on, Rose. It's time you showed me around the rest of this place."

He was right, she could see that the Doctor needed some time to himself, but she needed to speak to him at some point, to find out exactly where she stood. What, with Sarah Jane and now Reinette, she felt that she'd been deluding herself, that she meant nothing to him, a child that he could impress and show off to.

Without any enthusiasm, Rose showed Mickey the living room, with the comfy sofas, large screen TV and sound system, the Medi-Bay, the library, the gym and swimming pool. They found their way to the clothing department, which the Doctor still called the wardrobe, and then stumbled upon some guest bedrooms on the way back.

"I suppose one of these is yours," Rose told him.

"Brilliant," Mickey said, looking at the five star hotel room.

Rose took him back to the living room and switched on the TV, finding the latest Top Gear episode to watch. "Why don't you watch this, while I go an' have a word with the Doctor?"

"Okay," he said reluctantly. "I'll see you later."

Rose made her way back to the console room, and found the Doctor leaning on the console, watching the time rotor pump up and down, as though he found solace in it.

"Hi," she said quietly, hesitantly, not sure if she should interrupt his meditation.

He turned and smiled at her. "Hello…, where's Mickey Boy?"

She looked over her shoulder. "He's in the living room, watchin' Top Gear." The Doctor nodded an 'ah'.

"Can I…, can I ask you somethin'?"

"Yes, of course you can Rose, you can ask me anything?"

Without any preamble, she went straight to the crux of what was bothering her. "When you charged through that time window..., did you give any thought to me, or Mickey?" Rose asked him.

"Of course, but I had to stop those androids from rampaging through eighteenth century France."

"And I don't suppose Reinette had anythin' to do with it?"

"Well, her life was in danger."

"And so you ran off to save her, trapping yourself in eighteenth century France, and us, three thousand years in our future," Rose said, she could feel her anger rising at the thought of what he'd done.

"We weren't trapped, I came back didn't I?"

"Only 'cos you got lucky. Would you have run off and left Reinette like that to rescue me?"

The Doctor was trying to gather his thoughts, but there was no way Rose was going to let him.

"No, of course you wouldn't, 'cos she's a high class hooker from Versailles, and I'm just a common shop girl from Peckham."

"Wha? Rose, I don't think of you like that," he said, trying to placate her.

"Don't you...? Don't you? First it was Sarah Jane, and now Reinette. Got a thing about pickin' up women an' then dumpin' them when a better one comes along have ya?" she said angrily.

The Doctor was stunned by this outburst, and it took him by surprise. He didn't have the human brain to cope with this kind of emotional turmoil. "Rose…, I…."

"Oh leave me alone, I'm goin' to bed." She stormed past him and went to her room, slamming the door behind her, and diving face down on her bed.

A short while later there was a gentle knock at the door. "Rose?" he called to her.

"Go away," she said between sobs.

"Rose, please, let me explain."

"What, so you can come up with more excuses, more lies?"

That hurt him; he leaned against the wall and slid down to sit with his arms around his knees. "I was trying to find out why the androids wanted Reinette's brain. I did something risky; I went inside her mind to have a look."

He paused and listened, there was no response from her room, at least she wasn't telling him to shut up and go away. "Telepath to telepath isn't a problem, because they both have disciplined minds. But a telepath to non telepath is risky, all those feelings and emotions getting in the way. While I was exploring her thoughts, her emotions were sneaking under my rational thoughts and imprinting on my Limbic system."

He paused again, thinking about his feelings for Reinette.

"What happened?" a small voice asked from Rose's room.

"It was like taking a love potion, I was infatuated with her, and there was nothing I could do about it. I came back here so that I could bring her through and show her the stars."

"Wouldn't that have messed up the time lines or somethin'?"

Oh Rose, she was SO smart, and he was SO proud of her for that. "Yes it would, big time, and I would never let anything do that, would I? So, can you see that I wasn't in my right mind?"

He heard the door click, and he stood up, Rose's tear stained face appearing in the gap. They just stood there looking at each other.

"I'm sorry Rose," he said. "I was trying to make things right for her, and I made them wrong for us."

"You made me feel so worthless, especially after the thing with Sarah Jane and everythin'."

"I know, and I am truly sorry, I never meant to hurt you." He hesitated. "Do you…, do you want me to take you home, I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to leave."

Rose opened the door, wrapped her arms around him, and buried her face in his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and rested his chin on top of her head.

"No," her muffled voice said. "I want to stay here with you."

He realised he'd been holding his breath, when he exhaled with relief. "Come on, time for bed," he said and led her into her bedroom, so that he could tell her a bedtime story as she fell asleep.

Neither of them noticed the door of the guest bedroom silently close.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

When Mickey woke up, it was fair to say that he was a little disorientated. Firstly, he'd been dreaming that he and Rose had been out on a Saturday night, like they used to, not that long ago. Secondly, he could smell the Sunday morning fry up that she always did when she stayed over.

So, when he opened his eyes and saw that he wasn't in his flat, but in a hotel room, he had to try and remember the previous day's events, and where he'd ended up.

"Mmmm, Rose?" he said sleepily, and then it came back to him, he was on the TARDIS, and she'd been making up with the Doctor, finishing with a hug outside her bedroom, before he took her inside. Well, that burst his bubble and put his dream firmly in the realm of fantasy.

He'd known it for months now, and didn't want to believe it, and now, even when he believed it, he didn't want to admit it. Rose loved him, but she wasn't IN love with him, not anymore, not like he was, and he knew that if she came and said 'Mickey, I've been a fool again', he'd have her back like a shot.

He climbed out of bed, and in his boxer shorts, found the en suite shower. He enjoyed the perfect temperature shower, and the drying air jets had him in fits of laughter. He went back into the bedroom and investigated some of the draws, where he found clean boxers and socks that fit him perfectly.

"I don't think anyone will mind if I borrow some clean underwear," he said to himself, and set off to find the source of the wonderful smell.

"Mickety-Mick," the Doctor said, as he walked into the kitchen, holding his fist up for a 'bump'. "How did you sleep?"

"Amazin' actually, it was so comfortable in that room," he said.

Rose smiled at him. "That's the TARDIS, she gets in yer head and relaxes ya…, I love it. D'ya want a fry up?"

"Hell yeah, I'm starvin'." He sat down at the table, while Rose got up and went to the counter first and poured him a mug of tea before going to the cooker and putting his fry up on a plate.

"There ya go mate," she said as she put them on the table in front of him.

"Hah! Just like old times, eh Babe?" he said with a grin. Rose looked a bit awkward, not really knowing how to react.

Mickey saw her expression and smiled at her. "Hey, c'mon Rose, we had some good times, didn't we? Ya can't deny that. Ooh, I,m gonna miss your fry ups."

Rose looked at him, studying his face, as she realised what he had just said. He had moved on, he was telling her that he had moved on, but they were still mates. She reached across the table and squeezed his hand, as her eyes became moist with tears.

"Mickey, any time you want a fry up, you just give me a call, yeah?"

Mickey grinned at her, putting a fork full in his mouth. "I'll hold ya to that."

The Doctor smiled at them, happy that these two friends had finally come to their senses and worked out their differences, and they were different, which was good, 'vive le difference'.

"So, did ya do this fry up in the replicator then?" Mickey asked as he had a swig of his tea.

The Doctor answered that one. "No, it was all Rose, and can I just say that I agree with you on her fry up's, they're the best," he said with a big smile. "You can let the replicator do it, or you can just replicate the raw ingredients, and cook it yourself."

"Mmmm, definitely cooked for me," Mickey said.

"Is that all you boys want me for, my fry ups?" she joked. After the heart to heart she'd had with both of them, she was more relaxed and confident with her place on the TARDIS.

"No, of course not," Mickey said.

"No, you make a mean cup of tea as well," the Doctor said with a grin.

"Shut up," Rose laughed, giving him a playful slap on his shoulder.

"Oh, an' I need ya to cut me hair," Mickey said cheekily. "Actually, do you have any hair trimmers on board? I could do with a trim."

"There are some in the Medi-Bay," the Doctor told them, and saw their expressions. "Don't ask."

"Okay, I'll give you a cut after breakfast," she told him, and then turned to the Doctor "So, what's the plan for today then?"

"While we're in the Vortex, I'd like to update the galaxy maps. Because the universe is expanding, the TARDIS has to regularly compensate for the movements of the galaxies."

"Okay," Rose said. "Can we help you with that?"

"That would certainly speed things up, thanks. I'll go and make a start, and you can come through when you've finished shearing Mickey." He stood and left the kitchen, going through to the console room.

In the Medi-Bay, Rose had got Mickey in an examination chair, and tilted it backwards so the hair didn't go down his collar.

"So, how short do ya want it? I mean, it's short as it is," she said as she picked up the cordless trimmer.

"A number one, all over."

"Blimey, that is short!"

"Well, it's time I left the past behind and made a fresh start, y'know, a new image."

Rose set the cut to one, and switched the trimmers on. "About that Mickey..., I'm sorry for the way things have worked out..., the way I've treated ya."

"Hey, don't go beatin' yerself up Rose, I should 'ave seen it comin' ages ago, when ya took off with that wanker Jimmy. It's like y'were always lookin' to do somethin' with yer life, where as me, I was happy just to go down the pub, watch football, and fix cars."

"Yeah, but I thought when I'd found what I was lookin' for, you'd be there with me."

"I must admit when you called me from Cardiff, I thought things weren't goin' well for ya and that you wanted us to get back together."

"Ah, yeah..., sorry about how that went an' all," she said sheepishly as she guided the humming trimmer over his head.

Mickey laughed at the memory. "An' then when Captain Flash opened the door, I wondered what the hell was goin' on."

Rose laughed with him at the memory, and the name 'Captain Flash', it reminded her of 'Flash Heart' from Blackadder and how Jack could have been the inspiration for that character.

"I think you were more Jack's type than me," she said with a smirk. "There ya go, all done."

She sat the chair up and dusted his shoulders with a soft brush. "Blimey, it don't 'alf make ya look different."

"Really?" he said with a grin. "Good different, or bad different?" He'd forgotten that the 'new' Doctor had asked her that exact same question when he'd woken up from his regeneration.

Rose smiled at the memory and gently stroked his cheek. "Good..., more rugged and mature."

"Rugged and mature," he said puffing out his chest like a proud peacock. "Yer never know, maybe I'll pull some cute alien bird while we're out here," he said, grinning initially, but then frowning in thought. "There again, I don't fancy havin' kids with green skin and four arms. Can yer imagine, it's bad enough when they've only got two?"

Rose laughed, but she realised that Mickey had been thinking like that about them, settling down, and having a family. She felt guilty that it wasn't for her, not yet, not now that she knew that there was so much out there, and there was a man who could give her what she longed for.

"C'mon then, let's go an' see what the Doctor's up to," she said, holding out her hand for him.

Mickey looked at her offered hand and smiled. Taking her hand, he realised their love for each other was like siblings now, rather than lovers. They went and joined the Doctor at the console, where he was studying the display screen, and making adjustments to the controls.

"Ah, right, there you are. Rose, if you could go over there and get ready to hold down that lever. Mickey, see that button? Hold your finger on it."

As the universe expanded, the galaxies moved away from each other, and the Doctor was mapping those movements, storing the data in the galaxy maps with the button Mickey was holding down.

"So what kind of things do you get up to when you're travellin?" Mickey asked to pass the time.

"Oh, all sorts," Rose said, and proceeded to recount their adventures so far, occasionally interrupted by the Doctor asking her to push the lever up and then down again.

"... And of course, you remember Margaret the Slitheen, the TARDIS turned her into an egg and we took her home," Rose said before carrying on with her narrative.

When she got to the Queen Victoria story, Mickey's jaw dropped. "You're kiddin' me, a real, live werewolf? And you were knighted?"

"Yeah, I know, how crazy is that?" Rose laughed.

They carried on chatting, and Mickey was so enthralled by their stories that he didn't pay any attention when the Doctor and Rose sat on the jump seats.

"And that weird munchkin lady with the big eyes? Do you remember? The way she looked at you! And then she opens her mouth and fire comes out!" the Doctor said with a laugh.

"I thought I was going to get frazzled!" she laughed with him.

"Yeah, one minute she's standing there, and the next minute...,"

"...Roar!" they said together, laughing.

"Yeah, where was that, then? What happened?" Mickey asked, smiling at the fun that they'd had.

"Oh, it was on this er, this er, planet thing, asteroid, it's a long story, you had to be there." He noticed that Mickey was holding down the button on the console. "Er, what're you doing that for?"

"Because you told me to," Mickey said.

"When was that?"

"About half an hour ago."

"Erm..., you can let go now," the Doctor said sheepishly. Mickey took his finger off the button and it went 'bloop'. Rose started giggling.

"Well, how long's it been since I could've stopped?"

"Ten minutes...? Twenty...? Twenty nine?"

"You just forgot me!" Mickey said angrily.

"No, no, no. I was just..., I was..., I was calibrating. I was just... No, I know exactly what I'm doing."

'BOOM!' The console exploded in a flash of light and plumes of smoke, and the group were thrown to the floor. They picked themselves up and clung on to the console.

"What's happened?" Rose asked.

"The Time Vortex is gone. That's impossible, it's just gone," the Doctor said, trying to compensate with the controls. "Brace yourself! We're going to crash!"

The TARDIS slammed into the ground, and threw them to the floor, all the lights went out, and the console fell silent.

"Everyone all right? Rose? Mickey?"

"I'm fine," Mickey said. "I'm okay. Sorry. Yeah.

The Doctor looked up at the rotor. "She's dead... The TARDIS is dead."

"You can fix it?" Rose asked as though it was a statement of fact.

"There's nothing to fix…, she's perished," he said as he circled the console. "The last TARDIS in the universe, extinct," he said sadly.

"We can get help, yeah?" she said.

"Where from?" the Doctor asked her.

"Well, we've landed. We've got to be somewhere," she said.

Mickey moved away from the console and walked down the ramp.

"We fell out of the Vortex, through the void, into nothingness," he said, his voice went quiet and thoughtful. "We're in some sort of no place... The silent realm... The lost dimension."

"Otherwise known as London," Mickey said from the door, stepping outside. "London, England, Earth."

The Doctor and Rose stepped out onto a grassy bank, with Lambeth Palace behind them, and the Thames in front. Mickey jumped down onto the pavement. "Hold on," he said, picking up a newspaper. "First of February this year not exactly far flung, is it?"

"So this is London?" the Doctor asked.

"Yep," Mickey said with a grin.

"Your city?"

"That's the one."

"Just as we left it?"

"Bang on."

The Doctor looked up. "And that includes the Zeppelins?"

"What the hell?" Mickey and Rose looked up, open mouthed, watching Zepplin airships passing overhead.

"That's beautiful," Rose said in amazement.

Mickey tried to make sense of it. "Okay, so it's London with a big international Zeppelin festival."

"This is not your world," the Doctor told them.

Mickey quickly caught on, he'd seen Star Trek. "But if the date's the same, it's parallel, right? Am I right? Like a parallel Earth where they've got Zeppelins. Am I right? I'm right, aren't I?"

"Must be," the Doctor agreed.

"So, a parallel world where?" Rose asked.

Mickey understood it. "Oh, come on. You've seen it on films. Like an alternative to our world where everything's the same but a little bit different, like, I don't know, traffic lights are blue; Tony Blair never got elected…."

"And he's still alive." Rose was staring at an advert for Vitex Lite, it was cherry flavour. Rose remembered seeing the name Vitex on large containers in her parents flat when she had gone back to see…, the man in the advert, her father, Pete Tyler. "A parallel world and my dad's still alive."

She walked over to the advert to get a better look, the Doctor and Mickey followed her. "Don't look at it, Rose. Don't even think about it. This is not your world," the Doctor told her.

"But he's my dad and…." She reached out and touched the advert, which activated it and an animated Pete Tyler puts his thumb up and says 'Trust me on this'.

"Well, that's weird," she said. "But he's real."

"Trust me on this," the advert said.

"He's a success. He was always planning these daft little schemes, health food, drinks, and stuff, everyone said they were useless, but he did it."

The Doctor grabbed her by her arms and turned her away from the electronic advert. "Rose, if you've ever trusted me, then listen to me now. Stop looking at it. Your father's dead, he died when you were six months old. That is not 'your' Pete; that is 'a' Pete. For all we know, he's got his own Jackie, his own Rose, his own daughter who is someone else, but not you. You can't see him. Not ever."

The advert spoke as if to reinforce the Doctor's words. "Trust me on this…. Trust me on this... Trust me on this... Trust me on this..."

* * *

Mickey managed to land Lumic's Zepplin in Kennington Park, and the Doctor, Pete Tyler and Jake Simmonds, jumped out to tie the mooring ropes to trees and railings. Mickey and Jake went back to Battersea, to pick up the Preachers van, while the Doctor, Rose, and Pete headed for Lambeth Pier and the TARDIS.

Pete and Rose were standing on Lambeth Palace Road, outside the TARDIS, she was still wearing the maids outfit. The Doctor was inside, plugging in the power cell.

"So, what happens inside that thing, then?" Pete asked her.

"Do you want to see?" she asked, hoping that if he saw the inside, she could convince him to stay.

"No, I don't think so," he said hesitantly. "But you two..., you know..., all that stuff you said about different worlds…., who are you?"

"It's like you say…. Imagine there are…, different worlds..., parallel worlds. Worlds with another Pete Tyler and Jackie Tyler's still alive...and their daughter."

Pete started to look uncomfortable as Rose looked at him longingly.

"I've got to go," he said quickly.

"But if you just look inside," she pleaded.

"Nah, I can't. There's all those Lumic factories out there. All those Cybermen still in storage. Someone's got to tell the authorities what happened, carry on the fight…"

The door of the TARDIS opened and the Doctor stepped out, jogging towards them. "Rose? I've only got five minutes of power. We've got to go."

"The Doctor could show you," Rose said, desperate for her 'father' to go with them in the TARDIS.

"Thank you…, for everything," he said.

Rose couldn't hold back any more. "Dad."

That was too much for him. "Don't. Just, just don't," he said and quickly walked away, looking back, one last time, before disappearing into the night at a run.

Mickey and Jake walked towards them from the road, where they had parked the van. Rose didn't really see them coming, she was upset that the man who looked like her father, wouldn't even entertain the idea that she could be his daughter in another universe.

"Here it is. I found it. Not a crease," Mickey said, handing over familiar, folded, brown clothing.

"My suit! Good man. Now then, Jake, we've got to run. But one more thing…. Mrs Moore, her real name was Angela Price. She's got a husband out there, and children. Find them. Tell them how she died saving the world," the Doctor ordered.

"Yeah, course I will," he said with a boyish grin.

"Off we go, then," the Doctor said cheerfully.

Mickey hesitated. "Er..., thing is, I'm staying."

The Doctor was gob smacked. "You're doing what?"

"You can't," Rose said quietly. She'd just been rejected by a man who, to all intents and purpose, was her father, and now, her best friend was leaving her.

Mickey had been thinking about this since he met the double of his grandmother, Rita Anne Smith. In his world, she had tripped on a piece of loose carpet, and fallen down the stairs to her death. He always blamed himself for that, after she had been badgering him to repair the carpet, and he never did.

"It sort of balances out," Mickey said, his voice full of emotion. "Because this world lost it's Ricky, but there's me. And there's work to be done with all those Cybermen still out there."

"But you can't stay," Rose told him, her voice breaking, tears welling in her eyes.

"Rose, my gran's here…, she's still alive…, my old gran, remember her?

"Yeah," she squeaked.

"She needs me."

"What about me? What if I need you?" she cried.

"Yeah, but Rose, you don't…." He looked pointedly at the Doctor, almost accusingly. "It's just you and him, isn't it...? We had something a long time ago, but not anymore." They'd had this conversation yesterday morning, they'd moved on.

"Well, we'll come back…, we can travel anywhere. Come and see you, yeah?" she said, looking to the Doctor for reassurance, but she got none.

"We can't," he said sadly. "I told you, travel between parallel worlds is impossible…. We only got here by accident, we..., we fell through a crack in time, when we leave, I've got to close it…, we can't ever return."

The realisation of that suddenly hit Mickey, and he looked at his heartbroken, ex girlfriend. He'd made his decision, and maybe a clean break was for the best. There would be no chance of bumping into her and stirring up old memories, old feelings.

"Doctor," he said, holding out his hand for the Doctor to shake.

"Take Rose's phone, it's got the code. Get it out there, stop those factories," he said seriously as he shook his hand. They stood there for a long moment, exchanging a look of understanding. "And good luck..., Mickey the idiot," he said with a smile and a friendly tap on the cheek.

"Watch it," Mickey said with a smile.

The Doctor glanced at Rose and back at Mickey, they needed to say a proper goodbye, so he turned and went into the TARDIS. They watched him go inside and then turned to face one another.

"Thanks," Mickey said. "We've had a laugh though, haven't we...? Seen it all, been there and back. Who would have thought, me and you off the old estate, flying through the stars."

"All those years just sitting there, imagining what we'd do one day," she cried. "We never saw this, did we?"

Mickey blinked back tears, he was a bloke, and he couldn't let her see him cry, so he grabbed her in one last hug. "Go on, don't miss your flight."

Rose on the other hand, didn't care, she sobbed as she realised that she would never see him again. Without looking up, she slowly walked back to the TARDIS with a heavy heart. At the door, she took one last look at the man who was once her lover, and now, her best friend, before going in and closing the door on him for the last time.

She walked up the ramp and straight into the Doctor's arms, where she sobbed on his shoulder.

"Hey…, hey," he said as he rubbed her back comfortingly. "Mickey's alright, it's a whole new world, new opportunities…, a new life." He pulled down the lever, and the time rotor started pumping up and down.

"Can I go home?" Rose asked quietly, and the Doctor froze. What was she asking? did she just want to go home, or did she really WANT to go home?

She felt him tense up, and after the last few days, with all the turmoil of her emotions, and the misunderstandings, he must think that Mickey was the final straw. She pulled away slightly so that she could wipe the tears from her cheeks with her hand and look at his face.

"Just to see Mum," she whispered. "I need to see Mum…, to make sure she's alright, y'know, after seeing that Jackie…." Tears started to flow again.

"Of course…, let's go and get changed out of these outfits, and then I'll set the coordinates." Rose grabbed him into a hug again, and they just stood there, sharing a comforting embrace.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

**48 Bucknell House.**

**Powell Estate, Peckham.**

Jackie had just finished doing a wash and cut for one of her neighbours, and had seen her out the door. The money she made from hairdressing wasn't much, but it helped to supplement the benefits she relied on to pay the bills. Now Rose wasn't here, bringing in a wage, she had to tighten her belt and watch her spending.

She went into the kitchen and picked up the kettle to fill it with water, when she felt that wheezing, grinding sensation in her chest. It felt as though the whole flat were vibrating to the sound of that mad box that her daughter travelled about in. Hang on; it was in the flat, in the living room to be precise.

Jackie put down the kettle and quickly went through to the living room, where a blue, wooden box took up most of the room. The door opened, and Rose stepped out, looking at her as though she were a ghost or something.

"You're alive," Rose said, almost in disbelief, before running forward and hugging her mother. "Oh mum, you're alive."

"Well, I was the last time I looked," she said with mild amusement, and then she saw the Doctor's face. "What is it? What's happened, Sweetheart? What's wrong? Where did you go?"

Rose couldn't speak; she was so overcome with emotion.

"Far away," the Doctor told her quietly. "That was…, far away." He gazed off into the distance.

Jackie noticed that the Doctor had closed the door of the TARDIS, no one else was coming out. A knot of dread formed in her stomach. "Where's Mickey?" she asked, dreading the answer. Was this why Rose was so upset, was Mickey…, dead?

"He's gone home," the Doctor said, not sad, but not happy either. So not dead then, just somewhere else, what did he mean, he's gone home? After a long hug, Jackie guided Rose to the sofa and sat her down.

"I was just puttin' the kettle on, dry yer eyes Sweetheart and I'll make the tea."

With a mug of tea in her hand, Jackie sat down and looked at them expectantly. "Well...? Come on then, I'm listenin'," she said.

The Doctor and Rose, told her about Mickey's first adventure on a derelict spaceship, with repair droids and eighteenth century France. Then, how they had crashed into another universe and dealt with robots trying to steal peoples brains. They didn't mention that it was a parallel universe, with a Pete Tyler and a Jackie who had been killed.

"Oh God, you two have been lookin' for trouble again, aint ya? No wonder you were all upset. An' what happened to Mickey then?"

"Er…, he met his…." Rose started.

"He met someone in that universe, someone he really cared about, and decided to stay," the Doctor said. Rose looked at him and smiled, that was brilliant.

"Blimey, she must be somethin' special to make him give up everythin' here."

Rose gave a little laugh. "Oh, you have no idea Mum, she's amazin'," Rose said, knowing how impressed her Mum had been with Rita Anne.

"That's better Sweetheart, seein' ya laugh again, you had me worried when you first got here. An' what was all that about me bein' alive?" Jackie said.

"Oh, just ignore me, I was all upset about Mickey leavin', that's all."

Jackie gave her a questioning look, as though she didn't believe her, but decided not to push it. "I'll go and start the dinner then," she said, standing up and moving towards the kitchen.

"Ah, right, well…, I'll get the TARDIS ready then," the Doctor said, standing and reaching for the door of the TARDIS.

"I said I'm makin' dinner," Jackie said, in a forceful tone.

He swallowed hard, and Rose tried to stifle a laugh. This alien had just defeated an army of Cybermen, and yet her mum had him trembling in his trainers.

"Right..., shall I lay the table or something?"

Rose couldn't stifle the laugh anymore, and collapsed in a fit of giggles, as Jackie gave him a lopsided smile. "Hang on Mum; I'll give you a hand."

In the kitchen, Rose helped her mum prepare the vegetables and put them in pans on the stove, which looked as though it had seen better days.

"Mum, this cooker is lookin' a bit knackered."

"I know Sweetheart, the ring at the back stopped workin' a month ago, I'm havin' to save up to replace it."

Rose thought about this, and felt guilty again about gallivanting around the universe, wanting for nothing, while her mother struggled to make ends meet, and then she had an idea.

"Why don't you have Mickey's cooker? I mean, he's not comin' back, and it's hardly used, as he used to eat a lot of takeaways."

"Oh I couldn't…, could I?"

"Why not? In fact we need to empty the flat an' tell the council that he's moved out," Rose realised, a sad expression on her face.

"Well, it would be a shame to see his stuff thrown down the tip."

"There ya go then, we can take the TARDIS over there after dinner an' clear it out."

Rose explained to the Doctor that because Mickey wasn't coming back, they had to empty his flat so that someone else could live there.

"It's alright Rose, I might not do domestic, but I do understand the basic concept of domiciles."

"Okay, so after dinner, can you fly us over there so we can get all his stuff?"

Oh great, more domestic!

The TARDIS materialised in the untidy living room of Mickey's flat, and Rose hesitantly stepped out, followed by her mum, and then the Doctor.

Jackie put a reassuring hand on Rose's shoulder. "Are you alright Sweetheart?"

Rose put her knuckle up to her lips in that way that she had always done when she was uncertain about something. "Yeah…, it just feels weird, knowin' he's never comin' back." She started to cry again.

"Look Rose, I can do this with Jackie if you'd prefer, you could stay in the TARDIS," the Doctor said.

Rose shook her head and looked at him with moist eyes. He could be so thoughtful and sensitive at times. "No, I'll be alright…, I need to do this, y'know, draw a line under it, move on."

The Doctor nodded his understanding, and Jackie squeezed her shoulder in support. "I'll…, I'll just go through to the kitchen and disconnect the cooker," he said, holding up his sonic screw driver.

That left Rose and Jackie to start clearing up the living room, which was a marathon job on its own. Rose picked up a motoring magazine off the coffee table and leafed through it before putting it back down. She looked over at the tatty sofa, where they'd spent many a night watching TV.

"Well, yer can leave the sofa," Jackie said with a look of disgust. "Ya don't know what's livin' in the back of that."

Rose snorted a laugh. That did it, the melancholy mood was gone. "C'mon, let's see what's worth keepin', and what the council can clear out."

They started moving small items into the TARDIS, the television, coffee tables, stools, a phone. Every so often, Rose would find a seemingly insignificant item, and remember the history of it or the circumstances when it was acquired.

"Oh-my-God," Jackie said as she leaned over the armchair.

"What?" Rose said, concerned. "What have you found?"

Jackie straightened up and turned to Rose, holding up a dirty sock as though it was a biohazard (which it probably was).

"Has he not heard of a dirty linen basket?"

Rose started to laugh, a proper laugh that remembered all the good times that she'd shared with Mickey in this flat. Jackie joined her and laughed herself, dropping the sock back on the chair.

The Doctor came through with the cooker, and the fridge, the microwave and the toaster. Slowly, they emptied his flat of the most useful possessions. Rose gathered up his box files that he'd filled with UFO sightings, conspiracy theories and all the things he'd investigated since Rose had taken to travelling with the Doctor.

"A computer?" Jackie said. "What do I need with a computer? I don't know how to use one."

"The Doctor can set it up in the spare room for ya, an' I can show you how to use it. All yer really need to use is the web browser."

Rose had one, last, sad look around the flat, the posters on the walls, the red 'stop' sign, the green 'go' sign, the bed…. That was hard, to look at what had been 'their' bed, and not feel the loss of her old boyfriend.

"Bye Mickey," she whispered, and closed the bedroom door.

In the TARDIS, the Doctor was preparing for take off at the console, and looked with concern as Rose came through the door, closing it behind her, and leaning on it. She saw his concern and smiled at him, nodding in response to an unspoken question, she was going to be okay.

"Next stop, Jackie's flat," he said as the time rotor started grinding up and down. He checked the view screen, and gave a slight frown. "Mmmm, that's interesting…, we'll have to sort that out later," he said, with a big smile on his face.

"What is it?" Rose asked.

"Oh, just a stray that needs catching and putting back where it belongs."

Back in the flat, the Doctor connected up the 'new' cooker and fridge, and then fixed up the computer in the spare room.

"Don't cha need an internet connection or sommat?" Jackie asked, as she popped her head around the door.

She heard a whistling, warbling noise, and saw the Doctor putting something in his jacket pocket. "Normally, yes, but I've given this one a bit of a super connection, it routes the signal through the TARDIS, you'll be able to surf the galactic, interworld web, and you'll be able to email and Skype each other."

Jackie hadn't got a clue what he was on about, but Rose was over the moon. "Oh Mum, it's brilliant, it'll be easier to keep in touch."

"Well, I'll believe that when I see it?" she said with a smirk. Rose rolled her eyes, and gave her a big smile.

Rose and Jackie hugged a goodbye, and Rose laughed at how uncomfortable the Doctor looked when Jackie gave him a hug.

"Right, yes, thank you Jackie, got to go, aliens to catch," he said, disentangling himself from her arms.

"It's not going to be dangerous is it?" Jackie asked, looking at Rose as a way of indicating that she wanted her kept safe.

"Nah, it's only in Woolwich, a single, hungry animal that needs taking home."

"That's alright then," Jackie said, as the Doctor held Rose's hand and led her into the TARDIS.

* * *

"Doctor! Doctor, the trap!" Rose called out along the corridor. They were in an old, disused warehouse, and a Hoix was on the loose.

"Where's he gone? Can you see him?" he called from another corridor.

Rose was standing at a crossroads with two, steaming plastic buckets, looking down each corridor in turn. "There he is! Stop," she called, as it ran across the end of the corridor. "No! Watch out! There!" she shouted as the Doctor appeared from another corridor, nearer to her.

He looked at her, and then down the corridors to his left and his right. "Where? Where?" He spotted it running across a corridor and set off in pursuit. Brilliant, it was heading for the rift portal manipulator that he'd set up in one of the empty rooms. If they were really lucky, they wouldn't need the buckets of sedative and stimulant if it ran directly into the portal.

The room was filled with bright light from an area inside three cones on the floor, all linked together with cables to a control box on the floor. The three cones were creating a dimensional doorway into the rift in Cardiff, which would send the Hoix back where it came from.

But of course, he wasn't lucky, of course not, he's the Doctor. The Hoix was contemplating the bright light in front of him, and the Doctor would only need to sneak behind it and push, when the door behind it opened, and a startled young man stood there in open mouthed amazement and terror.

The Doctor groaned as the Hoix started towards the young man, why are these things never straight forward? He reached into his pocket, and pulled out a piece of raw meat. "Here boy, eat the food. Come on, look at the lovely food. Isn't that nice? Isn't it? Yes, it is," he said in a baby talk voice.

"Get out of here, quickly," he called to the stranger, before turning his attention to the Hoix "That's a boy. Wouldn't you like a porky-choppy then?" If he could just entice it back towards the portal…. He saw the stranger still standing there, frozen to the spot in terror. "I said run!"

The young man came to his senses, turned and ran towards the stairwell.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah." Rose came running past the stranger, carrying the steaming blue bucket, which she threw over the Hoix. The Hoix wiped the adrenalin pheromone from its face, feeling the feeding frenzy start to rise in its chest.

"Wrong one. You made it worse," the Doctor said in disbelief.

"You said blue!" Rose shouted in accusation.

"I said not blue," he said in his 'dribbled down your blouse' tone of voice.

The Hoix turned to look at Rose; she would make a nice meal. Rose stopped, looked at the Hoix, and realised she was on the menu. 'SHIT!' she thought to herself, turned and ran away as fast as she could (and with something with that many teeth, that was very fast indeed).

The Doctor watched Rose run away with the Hoix in hot pursuit. "Hold on!" he shouted after her. If he could go around the other way, he could head them off. He closed the door and started to run across the room and out the door he'd come in.

Unfortunately, he was right, and skidded to a halt as Rose ran past the junction, screaming as she went. The Hoix was bearing down on him now, and he gulped. He turned tail and ran down another corridor, seeing Rose run the opposite way in another corridor.

He heard Rose coming before he saw her. "Aaaaaaaaagh…, oof!" They collided with each other.

"Where'd it go?" he asked her.

"Dunno, I was concentratin' on not gettin' eaten."

'ROAR!'

"Ah, there it is…, run!" They started running again down another corridor together. "At the end, split up, we'll try and confuse it."

Rose ran right, and the Doctor went left, the Hoix, not being very bright, decided to stick with the original menu item, and followed Rose. As she turned a corner, she saw the red bucket where she had left it originally.

"Yes!" she exclaimed and grabbed the bucket, turning to face the Hoix, which skidded to a halt. It sniffed the air and detected the myotonic pheromone that would immobilize it like a rabbit in headlights, or a Tennessee goat.

It may not have been very bright, but it knew if it got that pheromone over it, it would be powerless, even to this puny, human female, so it turned around, and ran away. It ran straight towards the Doctor, who was about to turn and run when he saw Rose, close behind with the red bucket.

"Oh good girl," he said with pride, as he ducked into a doorway to let the Hoix and Rose run past. It ran into a room where it had to stop, and Rose emptied the bucket over the alien, who then just stood there, motionless, waiting for someone to do something with it. The Doctor went back into the corridor and looked along it, he realised the young stranger was still standing there, watching them.

"Hold on. Don't I know you?" he asked him, he was sure he'd seen him before, only younger…, much younger. Before he could find out though, the stranger ran down the stairs and was gone. The Doctor shrugged his shoulders and went back to help Rose guide the Hoix into the dimensional doorway.

They held one arm each, as they walked the subdued Hoix down the corridor and into the bright light. The Doctor stooped down and flicked a switch on the box, shutting down the rift manipulator. The light faded, and so did the Hoix.

"Well, all-in-all, I think that went alright," he said with a smile, as he disconnected the cones and started wrapping up the cables.

"Could'a gone better," Rose said, wrapping up cables with him and putting the cones in the buckets. "What was it with the buckets anyway?"

"The red one caused him to 'freeze' and become docile, the blue one was for when he was standing in the dimensional doorway, so that he'd recover quickly and not be helpless when he arrived on his home world."

"So how come the red bucket still worked then?"

"The blue bucket reduced and shortened the effect, you probably noticed that he was able to walk on his own, we'd have had to drag him if you hadn't used the blue bucket first."

"Oh, not too bad then," she said with a smile, as they headed back to the TARDIS.

"Like I said, all-in-all, I think that went alright."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Rose was sitting on her bed, sorting through a box of her items that she'd collected from Mickey's flat, when there was a gentle knock at the door.

"Come in," she called. She knew who it was, there was only one other person in the TARDIS.

The Doctor's dishevelled hair, followed by his concerned face, peeped around the door. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, fine." She patted the bed next to her in an invite for him to sit down. "I was just sortin' through my stuff from Mickey's flat."

She took out make up items, deodorants and perfume, a toothbrush. She stopped and looked at a photograph of them taken one Christmas at her mum's flat, wearing paper hats, and obviously having a great time. It reminded her of her last Christmas, when they were all together.

She reached into the box again and pulled out a sexy black bra and matching knickers, which she quickly put behind her and sat on them, blushing at the Doctor's appreciative gaze. At the bottom of the box, was one last item, a simple note off the cork board in the kitchen.

It was just a simple shopping list, from before Christmas she thought. 'Bread, milk, peanut butter, beer, Rose's perfume'. He had bought her perfume for Christmas, even though he didn't know if she was ever coming back. That simple note told her that he was thinking about her when she was away, and she treasured it.

The Doctor cleared his throat and smiled at her. "I've been thinking about the musical mystery tour that we did a few weeks ago."

"Yeah, I loved it, what about it?"

"Well, I'm afraid it had a glaring omission."

Rose looked puzzled. "We covered most of the performers in all those concerts, especially with Live Aid."

"Yeah, but Elvis wasn't there was he?"

"Elvis, the King? Oh wow! You're right, we haven't seen him yet."

"Well then, let's put that right, cheer us up a bit, eh?"

"When, what period of his career?" she asked, all excited now.

"1950's, definitely 1950's, that was his hey day, and I know how you like to dress up.

"Brilliant, see ya later," she said climbing off the bed and heading for the wardrobe.

She walked into the console room, wearing pink heels, a pink dress, with layers of tulle, a short, blue jacket, and a pink hair band…, oh, and a broad smile.

"Ooh, look at you, you fifties mod chick you," the Doctor said, grinning at her, as he prepared the TARDIS for landing in New York.

"And you," she laughed. "How many gallons of gel did you use to get that mop of hair under control?"

The Doctor looked up at his Teddy boy quiff and smiled at her. "Do you like it?" he asked as he landed the TARDIS.

"Yeah, it suits you. I don't think I've seen you with your hair styled before." She walked down the ramp towards the doors.

"I thought we'd be going for the Vegas era, you know the.., white flares and the..., grr, chest hair," she said as she stepped out of the TARDIS.

"You are kidding, aren't you?" he said, popping his head around the door. "You want to see Elvis; you go for the late fifties, the time before burgers." He disappeared back inside the TARDIS, Rose had a little laugh.

"When they called him the Pelvis and he still had a waist. What's more, you see him in style," he carried on from inside.

Suddenly, there was the sound of a motor scooter starting up, and it sounded as though it was coming from inside the TARDIS. Rose looked around in amazement as the Doctor drove a blue scooter out of the TARDIS and pulled up in front of her, wearing a white crash helmet and aviator sunglasses.

"You going my way, doll?" he said in an Elvis voice.

"Is there any other way to go, daddy-o?" she replied in an attempt at an American accent, and putting on a pair of pink sunglasses. "Straight from the fridge, man."

"Ah, you speak the lingo," he said in surprise, tossing her a pink crash helmet.

"Oh well, me, mum, Cliff Richard movies…." she climbed on the back of the scooter. "...Every Bank Holiday Monday."

"Ah, Cliff…, I knew your mother'd be a Cliff fan." He throttled the scooter and they sped off down the road.

"Where we off to?" she shouted in his ear.

"Ed Sullivan TV Studios. Elvis did Hound Dog on one of the shows. There were loads of complaints. Bit of luck, we'll just catch it."

"And that'll be TV studios in, what..., New York?"

"That's the one."

At that point, a red London bus drove past the end of the street. They pulled up by a red post box and noticed lots of Union Flag bunting strung between the houses.

Rose looked around and laughed. "Ha! Digging that New York vibe."

"Well, this could still be New York," he said, unconvincingly. The TARDIS had done it again. "I mean, this looks very New York to me. Sort of Londony New York, mind."

"What are all the flags for?"

* * *

"Right, this is definitely October 28th, 1956?" Rose asked him, leaning on the console, and reading the history of Elvis's second appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show.

"Yep, and we are in the backstage area of the Ed Sullivan Theatre, 1697 to 1699 Broadway, between West 53rd and West 54th, in the Theatre District in Manhattan. Latitude: 40.7142700, Longitude: -74.0059700."

"Right, shut down the console NOW!" Rose said, she looked up at the time rotor. "Sorry girl, but I want to meet Elvis, and last time we tried, I had my face stolen by some mad woman in the TV."

The Doctor closed down the console, and held out his hand for her. "No mad, face stealing aliens this time doll, ready to meet the King?" he said in his Elvis voice.

"Right on, daddy-o." She laughed, took his hand, and skipped down the ramp to the doors.

Outside, the backstage area was a hive of activity, with people wearing headphones, carrying clipboards, and generally looking stressed. In the melee of studio staff, it was easy for them to find their way into the audience.

"Is that Ed Sullivan then?" Rose whispered, as she watched the show. "He seems a bit awkward and uncomfortable in front of the camera."

"That was part of his appeal…, a kind of 'car crash' television."

The show progressed, and it was time for Elvis and the Jordanaires to do their stuff.

"You know I can be found, sitting home all alone, if you can't come around, at least please telephone. Don't be cruel to a heart that's true," he sang, as he started performing 'Don't Be Cruel'.

The Doctor was watching the monitors, and noticed that the cameras were filming Elvis from the waist up; Sullivan had said he would use camera shots to censor his pelvic gyrations.

"I'll be back in a minute," the Doctor said, and before Rose could say anything, he'd gone.

The Doctor edged his way through the crowd to one of the cameras, which were broadcasting live, and covertly took his sonic screwdriver out of his pocket. The faint whistling warble was hardly audible above the noise of the audience and the performers, and slowly, on the monitor, Elvis's gyrations became visible.

The Doctor performed the operation on the other cameras, before making his way back to Rose.

"Watcha been up to?" she asked him suspiciously.

He nodded to the monitors. "Just ensuring the King gets the coverage he deserves. Without seeing his controversial movements, he wouldn't have made such an impact on the viewing audience."

"An' God, can he move," Rose said, all dreamy eyed.

Elvis performed his second number, 'Love Me Tender' before Sullivan came and stood next to him to do a piece to camera. Elvis, buoyed by the success of his performance, was in a playful mood, and kept shaking his leg, which got cheers and squeals from the audience. When Sullivan looked around, Elvis was just standing there, innocently smiling at him.

Later in the show he sang 'Love Me', and then an extended version of 'Hound Dog', which brought the house down with the raw energy of his performance.

Back in the TARDIS, Rose was still dreamy eyed, as she remembered the show, and how the Doctor had got them backstage with the psychic paper to meet him in person. 'Mr Presley, there are a couple of reporters from London, England, who would like to do an interview with you', one of the studio staff had said, knocking on his dressing room door.

"Oh he was so cute," Rose said to the Doctor, as he adjusted the controls.

"He was certainly a charmer," the Doctor said, grinning at her. "What was it he said? 'You've got to be one of the prettiest reporters I've seen'," he said in his Elvis voice.

"Are you jealous?" she teased. "You are, ain'tcha?"

"Hey, just be glad Jack wasn't there," he teased, and Rose burst into laughter.

"Anyway, if you think he was cute, do you want to see him 'smoulder'? His third performance was 'sex on legs' apparently."

"Cor, not 'alf," she said with a wicked smile.

The Doctor took them back to the Ed Sullivan Theatre on January 6th, 1957, and the TARDIS didn't argue. They knew their way now around the studio, and made their way into the audience again. They started watching the show impatiently, waiting for the King to appear.

Rose wasn't disappointed. Elvis stepped out in the outlandish costume of a pasha; he was playing Rudolph Valentino in _The Sheik_, with all stops out, from the make-up over his eyes, the hair falling in his face, to the overwhelmingly sexual cast of his mouth.

He performed a medley of 'Hound Dog', 'Love Me Tender', and 'Heartbreak Hotel', followed by a full version of 'Don't Be Cruel'. For a second set later in the show he did 'Too Much' and 'When My Blue Moon Turns to Gold Again'. For his last set he sang 'Peace in the Valley'.

The Doctor looked at her with raised eyebrows and grinned; she was a fan. Fifty years after this event, Elvis had still got it; he really was a class act.

* * *

The next morning, Rose was humming and singing 'Houndog' in the shower, using her bottle of shower gel as a microphone, and gyrating her hips as she did so. When she went into the kitchen, she was humming 'Love Me Tender'.

"Never let me go. You have made my life complete, and I love you so," she sang, absent minded, and not really registering how apt the words were.

She took some bread out of the bread bin and put it in the toaster, and reached the marmalade out of the cupboard.

"I'll be yours through all the years...," she continued, and a voice joined with hers. "….till the end of time." She closed the cupboard door, and the Doctor was standing there, grinning at her.

"Gets inside your head, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, I've been hummin' those tunes in the shower, they're great."

The toaster went 'ping', and the slices popped up.

"Breakfast?" she said with a smile, holding up the jar and a knife.

"Mmm, sounds great."

They sat down and ate their marmalade on toast, chatting about Elvis and his songs.

"So what do you fancy doing today then?" he asked her, as he bit into his final slice.

"Well, I'm dressed for adventure," she grinned, indicating her blue jeans and zip up purple top. "So how about a bit of exploring?"

"Okay, exploring it is. When we've finished here, we'll go to the console and see what we can find."

The Doctor was at the display screen, looking through random events, Rose was standing by his shoulder, trying to see if there was anything that took her fancy.

"Ooh, now that looks interesting," he said. "Something called the Galis Expedition."

"What's that then?"

"Don't know, that's why it's interesting. There were artefacts, a notebook, and some ancient pottery."

"Sounds good to me."

The Doctor moved around the console and started adjusting the controls, and the time rotor pumped up and down. After a short while, he prepared for landing, and struggled to lock the coordinates, as if the TARDIS were reluctant to land.

"That was a tight fit, we nearly didn't make it," he said, as they walked down the ramp.

"I don't know what's wrong though. She's sort of queasy. Indigestion, like she didn't want to land," he said, inspecting the exterior shell.

"Oh, if you think there's going to be trouble, we could always get back inside and go somewhere else," she said seriously, and then they burst out laughing. Like that was ever going to happen.

"I think we've landed inside a cupboard." He walked over to a yellow bulkhead door with a big wheel on it. "Here we go," he said as he turned the wheel and pushed the door open.

"Open door 15," a female computer voice said.

"Some sort of base," he observed. "Moon base, sea base, space base, they build these things out of kits."

"Close door 15," the computer said helpfully as he closed the hatch.

Rose became aware of howling and buffeting from beyond the walls. "Glad we're indoors, sounds like a storm out there."

"Open door 16." The Doctor opened another door onto a long corridor.

"Human design, you've got a thing about kits. This place was put together like a flat pack wardrobe, only bigger…, and easier."

He opened the door at the end of the corridor. "Open door 17."

There were three steps down into an area with tables and chairs, and a big 3 on the wall.

"Oh, it's a sanctuary base" he said, pleased to be able to identify the architecture. Rose closed the door and walked down the steps.

"Close door 17."

"Deep Space exploration, we've gone way out…, and listen to that..., underneath, someone's drilling."

"Welcome to hell," Rose said.

"Oh, it's not that bad," he said, trying to find something positive to say.

"No, over there." She pointed to the wall opposite, where there were words painted on the wall in big block letters, and a vertical alien script underneath.

"Hold on..., what does that say?" He moved quickly to the script and crouched down to inspect it. "That's weird..., it won't translate."

"But I thought the TARDIS translated everything, writing as well, we should see English." Rose didn't know why, but that troubled her more than any obvious, physical threat. Here was something that was really unknown.

"Exactly, if that's not working, then it means this writing is old…, very old…, impossibly old. We should find out who's in charge," he said with urgency in his voice.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes: This chapter is an abridged version of an earlier story I wrote called 'Stuff of Legend', available on this site. (Unashamed plug) I think it fits so well in between the episodes, that I've fit it in here.**

**Chapter 9**

The Doctor's voice came over the comm-link in the cockpit of the escape rocket. "Zach? We'll be off, now. Have a good trip home. And the next time you get curious about something... Oh, what's the point? You'll just go blundering in. The human race," he said with a 'tut' in his voice.

Ida was desperately trying to remember what had happened. "But Doctor, what did you find down there? That creature, what was it?"

The Doctor looked at Rose. "I don't know. Never did decipher that writing. But that's good, Day I know everything? Might as well stop." He closed the comm-link for a moment.

"What do you think it was, really?" Rose asked him. She was worried. If he didn't know what it was…? Well, there was no telling what could have happened.

"I think we beat it. That's good enough for me." He tried to sound upbeat to lift the mood.

"It said I was going to die in battle," she told him, not sure if it was telling the truth or just trying to scare her. If it was the latter, then it had succeeded.

"Then it lied," he told her with conviction. She was not going to die in battle. Not on his watch. He opened the comm-link again. "Right, onwards, upwards. Ida? See you again, maybe."

"I hope so." Ida's voice came back over the speaker.

"And thanks, boys!" Rose shouted back.

"Hang on though, Doctor," Ida called. "You never really said. You two, who are you?"

Rose looked at him. 'Good question' she thought, 'who are we?'

He could see the question in her eyes. In Habitation 3, when they had lost the TARDIS, they had talked of living a life, perhaps together. 'Yeah, but stuck with you, that's not so bad', she had said, selflessly.

He gave her one of his special smiles and answered Ida's question. "Oh, the stuff of legend," he said and closed the comm-link.

'I can live with that' she thought. 'The stuff of legend'. That held a promise of things to come. Conversations to be had, wishes to be fulfilled, actions to be taken. Yes! She could live with that... For now.

The time rotor started grinding up and down as they left the escape rocket behind. Rose took her phone out of her pocket and checked it, she had lost the signal on Krop Tor, but it was back now.

She speed dialled her mum. "Hi Mum, how are ya?"

"Rose, oh it's lovely to hear you, where are you?"

"Well, we've just been on the event horizon of a black hole, an' I lost the phone signal, so I just wanted to check that I could still contact you an' see if you were alright."

"An' when are ya comin' home Sweetheart?" Jackie asked, as though visiting a black hole was a routine as going to the shops.

"We'll call by soon Mum."

"I'll see you soon."

"I promise."

"All right, be careful…, bye."

"Love you, bye." Rose ended the call, and smiled at the Doctor.

"Where do you want to go next then?" he asked her, running a hand through his dishevelled hair.

"What...? Oh, I don't know. Where and when haven't we been before?" she asked him, as she put her phone in her pocket.

"Y'know, I really don't know," he told her. "That Krop Tor thing has thrown me a bit; I'm still a bit spooked by it."

"Hey, it all worked out alright in the end," she reassured him.

"Yeah, but it very nearly didn't." He had a concerned look on his face. "I destroyed the energy field holding the planet in place before I knew the TARDIS was there! I had condemned us all to that horrible fate," he confessed to her.

"Oh come here you." Rose pulled him into a hug. "You did what had to be done," she whispered into his ear. "I trust you... Always have, always will." With that she released the hug and without thinking, almost gave him a kiss on the lips. She hesitated and kissed him lovingly on the cheek.

"Tell you what, let's go to someplace where I can dress up again," she said with a beaming smile.

His dark mood was suddenly forgotten, filed away in that superior Time Lord brain of his. "Okay. Here's a first. Let's get the TARDIS to make the choice. She usually does anyway!" he said with a glance up at the rotor , the lights flickered in a 'huffy' sort of way.

"Right then Rose, come over here and you can set the coordinates," he said holding out his hand. She rushed over, took his hand, and hugged his arm all excited.

"What? I get to fly the TARDIS?" she said disbelieving.

"Welllll, sort of. You're going to select the 'where' and 'when' and I'll do the flyin'." Rose squealed with delight and clapped her hands together.

He grinned at her; that was so cute. He showed her dials and levers that she twiddled and set at random, before nodding in satisfaction.

"Right then, here goes, grab your ears and grab your nose, where we end up, nobody knows." He engaged the drive with his usual flourish as Rose collapsed in fits of laughter. The level of wheezing changed as the TARDIS made its way through the Vortex and into normal space.

The rotor stopped and the Doctor took the systems off-line. They both went over to the view screen which was suspended over the console.

"Where are we then?" Rose asked as he examined the readouts.

"Oh, this is great!" he said with enthusiasm. "Early 6th century England. The last time I was in this period, I had white curly hair, wore frilly shirts and a velvet jacket," he announced quite matter of fact.

Rose snorted a laugh. "You're kiddin', right? You used to dress like Laurence Llewellyn-Bowen? You must have had a great sense of humour." Rose howled with laughter.

The Doctor looked hurt. "Actually, I was quite a serious fellow and a bit of a sour-puss, but Sarah Jane didn't seem to mind. She thought I looked quite 'dapper'. In fact, it was this time period where we had our first adventure." He had a faraway look in his eyes as he remembered.

Rose wiped her eyes with her fingers. "So come on then. Are you gonna tell me where we are?"

His eyes went wide in amazement; he put his hand over his mouth. "Oh Rose! This is brilliant!" He gave a little giggle and grinned at her. "No, really. Absolutely brilliant! The stuff of legend."

"What?" she laughed. "Where are we?" She was getting excited as she picked up on his emotion.

He quickly went into lecturing mode. "We are on Earth. 510 A.D. 21st of June. It's a Monday. We are in the City of Legions, also known as Chester, and this is the really cool bit, outside of those doors..." He pointed at the wooden doors of the TARDIS.

"What? What? Tell me. Where are we?" she squealed.

He waggled his eyebrows and grinned. "The courtyard of Camelot castle. The home of the legendary King Arthur!"

Rose's mouth fell open, her eyes like saucers. "No! You are kiddin' me. Camelot! Really? I thought King Arthur was a myth."

The Doctor smiled at her. "And what do we say about myths Rose Tyler?"

She looked up and smiled back at him. "Most myths have a grain of truth in them?" she said tentatively.

"Exactly! You're thinking of 'Historia Regum Britanniae' by that old rogue Geoffrey of Monmouth. He made the whole thing up. Never was one for letting the facts get in the way of a good story. Actually you'd have liked him. Reminds me of Jack Harkness."

"And isn't Camelot supposed to be in Cornwall? Tintagel?" she said, recalling the stories that she thought she knew.

"Now you're getting your myths, your legends and your history mixed up," he told her.

"Oh, silly me," she said, rolling her eyes.

"This time period wasn't well recorded due to the Saxon invasions and the loss of Roman rule. There's no Sir Lancelot, no Holy Grail quests, just a brilliant king trying to unite a kingdom. So c'mon Rose Tyler, let's go and play dressing up." He grabbed her hand and they headed for the clothing department that he still called a wardrobe.

For the Doctor, it was quite easy to pick a simple green robe with a hood that he could wear over his brown suit, along with a broad leather belt.

He was first back to the console room and set about scanning the castle and familiarising himself with the floor plan.

"Well?" He heard the simple question from the doorway and turned around to look at Rose. His breath caught in his chest. There, standing in front of him was a vision from a Robin Hood film or something similar.

She wore a simple, pale blue shift dress which hugged her figure in all the right places. A low square collar gave a hint of her cleavage and a broad leather belt hung on her hips, accentuating her narrow waist. She had braided her hair along her temples and behind her ears ending in small ponytails behind each ear. She had a white linen scarf on her head that fell across her shoulders, held in place with a silver headband which sat on her head like a small crown.

"What'cha think?" she asked him. He just stood there, opening and closing his mouth like a goldfish, lost for words.

"I, er…, you, er... Blimey!" is all he could manage. Rose gave him that special smile, the one with her tongue just poking between her teeth.

'Yep. Still got it' she thought to herself.

"R-R-Rose? You know when I had big ears and wore a leather jacket?" he started to ask.

"Yeah?" Rose replied cautiously.

"I was an idiot! I can feel another compliment coming on, a real one this time. Rose Tyler, you look stunning. You really are beautiful."

Rose blushed and looked down at her hands. "Why thank you my lord. Thou art too kind." She looked back up at him, still smiling.

The Doctor snorted a laugh. "Well that's an improvement on your Scottish," he laughed.

He held out his hand for her and together they headed for the door.

The first thing Rose noticed when she stepped out of the TARDIS was the stink! The TARDIS had materialised in a makeshift stable and they were surrounded by sheep, goats, and chickens.

Rose hitched up her dress and picked her way past the animals and their droppings, over the straw and onto the flagstones. The Doctor smiled to himself when he saw that she had kept her trainers on, ready to run.

They browsed the large market within the walls of the outer bailey for a while, when they heard a fanfare of horns on the battlements.

"The King!" someone shouted.

"The King has returned!" someone else called out.

The clip-clop of hooves echoed through the entrance passageway of the barbican, and a large, black horse entered the courtyard. Mounted on the horse was a large, impressive, middle aged man. He exuded charisma and authority. There was no doubt that this man was the King. Behind him followed his retinue of equally impressive knights on horseback.

As the entourage passed by, the Doctor spotted the King's sword. "Rose! Look! Hanging from his belt! The King's sword!"

"Is that Excalibur?" she asked in awe. "The magical sword?" She noticed that his enthusiasm had turned to concern.

"Rose, there's no such thing as magic, only misunderstood technology," he whispered, almost to himself. "Do you see the intricate pattern on the scabbard?" he asked. Rose nodded as he continued. "It's Tezzarian, an alien language, which means that sword is off-world technology."

Rose's mouth fell open. "No way!" she exclaimed. "You mean we've landed in the middle of an adventure...? Brilliant!"

In the darkened passageway of the keep entrance, a local man, with odd body language was holding an open book, paying a great deal of attention to the King's sword.

* * *

Rose scrabbled over to the Doctor's motionless form and cradled his head on her lap.

"Doctor?" she whispered, stroking his unruly hair.

"Doctor!? Don't you go an' die on me! Don't you dare go changin' again!" She was crying now, tears rolling down her cheeks. "Don't you dare go an' die on me! Not now! I've got to tell you," her voice caught in her throat. "Tell you that I..."

"Rose?" he breathed. He reached up and caressed her face, wiping the tears with his thumb.

"I'm here," she laughed and cried. "I'm here." She hugged his head fiercely.

"Help me get to the TARDIS, I need the Medi-Bay," he told her.

She kneeled and put her shoulder under his armpit and they staggered across the room to the adjoining door, which led to his bedroom.

The Doctor took in the scene of devastation. "Blimey! The cleaners are going to be pissed!" he laughed and immediately winced. "Ooh, cracked ribs. No laughing, definitely no laughing."

They made it to the TARDIS Medi-Bay and Rose helped him lie on the examination couch. The couch came to life and started beeping and pinging as various robotic tools and implements attached themselves to the Doctor. An oxygen mask fitted itself over his face. A gold mist started to envelope his body as the nano-genes started to repair his body.

As she watched him, she reflected on how they had come to this point, where once again, it had fallen to them to save the world.

Firstly, there was that stranger that had been following them and paying too much attention to the King's sword. She had helped the Doctor to corner him in a hallway. It turned out he was a Time Agent called Lance Elliott, Lancelot, who'd have thought it? It even turned out that he knew Jack Harkness, that made Rose smile as she wondered if Jack had conned any money out of him.

Secondly, and much to her amusement, the Doctor had 'spoken' to the King's horse and his favourite hound, discovering that two alien ships had crashed into a lake in the Mara forest which bordered Chester. A Tezzarian Shield Maiden emerged from the lake, her energy shield glowing in the dawn twilight, and a dragon like alien, called a Craigon, had killed her and flown into the forest.

King Arthur and his hunting party had witnessed this, and the King had pulled the Tezzarian sword from a boulder where it had landed, after being knocked from her hand.

Thirdly, the Doctor told this tale as an after dinner story, and the King had invited them to attend court at the round table. Rose still couldn't believe that she had sat at THE round table, and recalled how it very nearly didn't happen.

**(An earlier recollection)**

"I'm sorry m'lady, when court is in session, women are not allowed in," the guard told her.

Rose was gob smacked and fuming. 'How dare he', she thought to herself. The Doctor turned and was about to intervene, and then he saw the look in her eyes. She had that 'Jackie Tyler' look, the look she has just before she strikes. He stepped back and raised an eyebrow at Arthur, grinning. He folded his arms; this was going to be good.

Rose slowly approached the guard until they were nose to nose. "And your name is?" she asked in a low, husky voice.

The poor lad. He had been brought up properly by his parents. You respect your betters. Always say please and thank you and you never argue with a lady. The Celtic warrior maidens were another matter; they were downright vicious and fought as well as any man.

Ladies were supposed to know the rules and follow them without question. This lady, dressed as a man, did the exact opposite and he didn't know what to do.

The guard cleared his throat and looked at his King for guidance. Arthur sat with his fingers steepled, a hint of a smile on his lips. Seeing no help there, he looked back at Rose and gulped.

"A... Adam m'lady," he said looking into her fiery brown eyes.

"Well Adam. I take it you were not present in the dinin' hall yesterday evenin' when we told our stories of our adventures. The TRUE stories of how we beat the odds against all sorts of bad guys."

He shook his head. "No m'lady, I was on duty on the battlements."

"Well Adam," she said again. "You would have learnt that I may be a woman, but I am no m'lady. I am Rose," she poked his chest. "Marion," poke in the chest. "Tyler," poke in the chest. "Companion of the Doctor. An extraordinary woman who has courage and compassion in equal measure. Who decided to take the hand of a Lord of Gallifrey and run through all of time and space."

She looked over to Arthur. "Me and the Doctor are a team. We look out for each other, we watch each others backs. And," she looked back at Adam. "If you try and stop me from looking out for him, or from watchin' his back, you may never be able to have children," she growled at him. "Do I make myself clear?"

A chuckle emanated from the direction of the King. "Lady Ro... Sorry, Rose, please join us at the table. I wish half of my guards had the bal..., the spirit you have just shown." He was now laughing, and Rose smiled as she joined the Doctor. She wished she had a camera, because the look of pride on his face was a picture.

**(Present recollection.)**

At court, the Doctor had proposed to find the Craigon and offer him a lift home, and so a party of knights was assembled and rode out into the forest. Only, the Craigon was disgraced and wouldn't go home to humiliation and a court martial, so he decided to stay and take the King's throne as his own.

With help from Lance, they managed to escape from the Craigon's lair and make it back to Camelot, where the Doctor waited for him on the roof, challenging him to combat. He knew the Craigon would refuse; he wanted it to follow him down to the dungeons, where he could trap it safely.

As usual, though, things didn't go to plan (not that he had one in the first place), and they had ended up in Rose's bedroom, where the Craigon smashed through the door. King Arthur had managed to sneak through the broken door and thrust Excalibur through the armoured scales, into the Craigon's chest.

Arthur was knocked aside, and Rose had managed to slide the sword across the floor to the Doctor, who thrust it into the Craigon's stomach. He was hurled across the room, and landed heavily against the wall and onto the floor.

Before the Craigon could crush Arthur under foot, Lance had reached his survival lighter out of his jacket, punched it through the hole in its stomach, and thumbed the flint wheel. There had been a wet 'boom', as the windows blew out, and bits of Craigon splattered the room.

She shuddered at the memories, and realised that there were more casualties outside, and she didn't know if they were dead or alive. She went back to her bedroom and found that Arthur was trying to extricate himself from under Lance. She grabbed Lance's lapels and started to drag him across the floor. Arthur grabbed his knees and lifted him off the floor.

"Where are we going?" Arthur asked her as they struggled through the door.

"TARDIS Medi-Bay" she replied.

"Rose, I have a confession to make." He smiled at her. "I understand less than half of the things you and the Doctor say."

Rose had a fit of post-stress hysterical giggles, knowing what was coming next.

"What the fuck!" Are the very un-royal words that came out of Arthur's mouth when they entered the TARDIS.

"Gadzooks!" is what Rose heard; as the TARDIS thought that this language was a bit choice for young ladies ears.

The Medi-couch lowered itself to the floor so that they could easily lower Lance onto it. As with the Doctor, after the couch had risen, it sprang into action and started to repair his body.

A green anti-burn gunk was sprayed on his face and his burnt right hand was placed in a plastic container of the same gunk.

Exhausted, Rose looked over at Arthur. "Fancy a cup of tea?" she asked him.

"I don't know, do I?"

"Oh, that's right; you haven't got tea yet have ya? I wonder if it'll cause a paradox thingy if I make you a cuppa. Oh, who cares? I need a cup of tea."

* * *

Lance was out of the Medi-Bay and healing well. The nano-genes had fixed up most of his injuries. The burns would take a bit longer so he had his right arm in a sling and bandages on his hand.

He had been summoned to the throne room along with the Doctor and Rose, by command of King Arthur.

Arthur and Guinevere sat on their thrones in front of the assembled court, the knighting-stool in front of them. The ceremonial sword was in its stand by the side of the stool.

"Ladies and gentlemen, today I have the great privilege to confer the honour of knighthood upon a man who demonstrated great courage, fortitude, and presence of mind under extreme duress. His action not only saved Camelot and the City of Legions, but also saved my life."

Arthur picked up the sword.

"Lancelot, please come forward and kneel before your King," Arthur commanded.

Lance stood and walked forwards to stand before Arthur. He knelt on the stool and Arthur touched his right then left shoulder with the tip of the sword.

"Advances Chevalier au nom de Dieu," Arthur said solemnly. Lancelot stood and Arthur hugged him gently. The assembled guest applauded and cheered as they left their seats to congratulate the new knight.

Rose hugged him and kissed him on the cheek. The Doctor grinned and slapped him on the back.

"So you two are on your way then," Lance said. "Leaving me here to my fate."

"Hey, you're the one who came here on your own volition, and you need to be here to throw Arthur's sword in the lake when he dies."

"Does that really happen?" Rose asked excitedly.

"Why not? The rest of the legend has been fairly close, and we can't have an alien sword lying around, now can we?" the Doctor said smiling.

"Tell you what Lance, before I put the Time Agency out of business, I'll get them to come and pick you up if you like," the Doctor told him.

Before Lancelot could answer, a guard called to him. "Sir Lancelot, the apothecary is here with your healing remedy."

He screwed up his face making Rose laugh. A young woman entered the throne room carrying a tray and placed it on the table.

She had curly, black shoulder length hair and beautiful green eyes. She wore a pale green dress with a white apron, and a white scarf head dress.

Lance looked at Rose and the Doctor, grinned, and looked back at the young woman. She was pouring a dark green liquid from a bottle into a goblet. She brought it over to Lance and he gave her a smile that made her blush.

As he took the goblet, his fingers touched hers and held the contact for a little longer than he should have.

"What is your name apothecary?" he asked with a silky smooth voice.

"Gwyneth Sir," she said, unimpressed with his attentions. "You must drink it down in one go," she told him.

He smiled and knocked it back. He immediately stuck out his green tongue, gasped and shuddered. The Doctor and Rose laughed at the expression on his face.

Gwyneth put a small spoon into a jar on the tray and scooped up the contents. She put the spoon in his mouth and closed his mouth by pushing his chin up.

"Mmmmm, strawberry jam, you should have given me that first," he told her.

She looked at him slightly seductively and said. "Maybe next time."

"He definitely knows Jack!" Rose said laughing as he walked over.

"Don't be too eager to send the Agency to get me, will you?" he said with a grin.

Arthur and Guinevere strolled over to say goodbye as Rose's phone started to ring.

"'Scuse me," she said as she took the call. "Hi Mum, how are ya?"

"What magic is that?" Arthur asked the Doctor in amazement, pointing at Rose's mobile phone.

"No magic Arthur, just a complicated machine that allows Rose to speak with her mother over a distance," he explained.

"Remarkable!" Arthur exclaimed.

"Mum, stop cryin' an' tell me what happened," Rose said.

"Well, Arthur, Guinevere, we will be going soon. Thank you for your hospitality," the Doctor said.

"Elton? Who's Elton when he's at home?" Rose said.

"Our hospitality seems inadequate for the service you have provided us," Guinevere said in earnest.

"He was usin' you to get to the Doctor! I'll kill 'im." Rose had her 'Jackie Tyler' face on.

"Er, I think we'd better be going now, bye." The Doctor grabbed Rose's arm, waved at everyone and headed for the door.

"He had a photo of me? I'll bloody kill 'im! No one upsets my Mum!"


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"I'll kill 'im," Rose raged as she stomped up the ramp, rattling the floor grating. "He made her cry, he made my mum cry."

The Doctor raised an eyebrow; he didn't think anything could make Jackie Tyler cry. He set the coordinates for the Tyler flat as he felt himself being drawn into another domestic situation.

"Calm down Rose, we'll be there in a minute," he told her.

The time rotor stopped, and Rose ran down the ramp, and into the living room. She saw her mum sitting on the sofa, dabbing her eyes with a tissue.

"Mum, what's happened?" she asked as she sat beside her and put an arm around her shoulders.

"Oh Rose, I've been a fool…, I've been acting like a silly schoolgirl," she sniffed.

"Alright Mum, calm down, I'll make a cuppa, and you can tell me all about it."

With a mug of tea in hand, Jackie started to tell them the tale of Elton Pope.

"I first met him down the launderette, the washing machine had broken, an' Mickey's not here anymore."

"Why didn't you call Mum? The Doctor could 'ave fixed it," she said looking up at him.

"Well, I didn't 'ave to, Love, Elton came back here an' fixed it for me…, said it was a fuse. He seemed like such a nice bloke…, made 'im a cup of tea I did. He left me his number in case I needed anythin' else fixin'."

"And did ya?" Rose asked gently.

"Did I what?" Jackie asked, slightly suspicious of what she was asking.

"Have anythin' that needed fixin'?"

"Oh…, yeah…, things seemed to keep goin' on the blink," she said, sheepishly. The Doctor raised his eyebrows, looking slightly amused by that statement. "An' he put some shelves up for me, he was very handy."

"Hmm, I bet he was," the Doctor said. Both Jackie and Rose gave him a 'look', and he decided to shut up. He didn't want another one of those slaps.

"He said it was power surges or somethin', causin' the fuses to blow." The Doctor looked up at the ceiling, noticing a small strand of cobweb by the light fitting.

"Well, yesterday evening, after he'd changed a fuse for me, he went and got a pizza for us."

"That sounds cozy," Rose said.

"It was nothin' like that madam, he was a mate, an' because he was a mate, I thought I'd put the money for the pizza in his jacket pocket, because he wouldn't have taken it. And that's when I found it…, a photograph of you."

"Where'd he get a photo of me?"

"I don't know Sweetheart, but it was on the estate, and you could see the TARDIS in the background, out of focus like."

This got the Doctor's attention. "A surveillance photograph, someone's been watching you," he said, looking at Rose. "Probably to get to me, or the TARDIS."

"Yeah, he said he was lookin' for ya, Doctor, but said he'd changed his mind…. I thought he liked me…."

"Oh Mum, don't worry, we're goin' to 'ave a word with 'im." She looked up at the Doctor, and he saw 'that' look on her face. 'Oh dear, poor Elton, he's for it', he thought.

They went back into the TARDIS, and the Doctor did what Rose would call a 'Spock' search for Elton Pope. He was a transport manager who did retail logistics for a 'modest little haulage company'.

"Hah! It's the young man from the warehouse, remember, when we were chasing the Hoix? After all of the alien invasions and other similar events that we were involved with, Elton co-founded a group called LINDA, London Investigation 'n' Detective Agency with four others who were interested in us."

"London Investigation 'n' Detective Agency?" Rose asked, emphasising the 'n'.

"Yeah, like Fish 'n' Chips, Rock 'n' Roll."

"Hmm, okay."

"It seems the group eventually got distracted from their original purpose and did things including novel readings, forming a band and 'blubbing'."

"Blubbing?"

"Blubbing," he said, shrugging his shoulders. "Ho-ho, here we are look. In March, someone called Victor Kennedy infiltrated LINDA."

He did some more searching. "There appear to be plenty of Victor Kennedy's, but not this one."

"Who is he then?" Rose asked. "Alien?"

"Possibly, he seems very keen to meet me; maybe it's time to oblige. I'll get the TARDIS to find…. Oh, now that's convenient, they seem to be in the same location."

He ran around the console, setting the coordinates, and landed the TARDIS in an alleyway. He walked down the ramp, with Rose following.

"Someone wants a word with you," he said to Elton who was kneeling next to a disgusting, green alien.

Rose stormed out of the TARDIS. "You upset my mum."

Elton looked up at the alien and pointed with his thumb. "Great big absorbing creature from outer space...and you're having a go at me?"

"No one upsets my mum," she said, not even noticing the great big absorbing creature from outer space.

"At last, the greatest feast of all. The Doctor," the great big absorbing creature from outer space said sticking out his tongue and drooling.

"Interesting. A sort Absorbatrix? Absorba….clon? Absorbaloff?" the Doctor said.

"Absorbaloff, yes," it agreed.

"Is it me or is he a bit…, Slitheen?" Rose whispered to the Doctor.

"Not from Raxacoricofallapatorius, are you?" the Doctor asked.

"No, I'm not, they're swine," it protested. "I spit on them. I was born on their twin planet."

"Really? What's the twin planet of Raxacoricofallapatorius?"

"Clom."

"Clom?"

"Clom. Yes. And I'll return there victorious, once I possess your travelling machine."

"Well, that's never going to happen," the Doctor said.

"Oh, it will. You'll surrender yourself to me, Doctor, or this one dies. You see, I've read about you, Doctor. I've studied you. So passionate, so sweet. You wouldn't let an innocent man die. And I'll absorb him, unless you give yourself to me," the alien threatened.

The Doctor scratched the back of his neck. "Sweet..., maybe. Passionate..., I suppose. But don't ever mistake that for nice. Do what you want." Rose looked up at him with a worried expression; she seriously hoped this was part of a plan.

"He'll die, Doctor," the alien said.

"Go on, then," the Doctor urged. The alien hesitated, and Rose stood there, opened mouthed, was he calling his bluff?

"So be it." The alien reached towards Elton.

"Mind you, the others might have something to say."

The alien paused in mid touch. "Others?"

One of the faces on his chest spoke. "He's right. The Doctor's right. We can't let him. Oh, Mister Skinner, Bridget, pull!"

"No!" the alien shouted.

"For God's sake, pull!" the absorbed face said.

"No, don't - get off, get off!" The alien started to struggle with itself.

"If it's the last thing we ever do. Bliss! All of us together. Come on, pull!"

"Stop it!"

"LINDA united, pull!" All the faces started to stretch out of the alien, causing it to drop its silver headed cane.

"Elton, the cane. Break it!" the absorbed face said. He reached forward and broke the cane over his knee, causing it to spark and flash.

"My cane! You stupid man. Oh, no!" The alien melted into a blob on the paving stones and started to seep away.

"What did I do?" Elton asked in disbelief.

"The cane created a limitation field. Now it's broken, he can't stop. The absorber is being absorbed," the Doctor explained.

"By what?"

"By the earth."

The absorbed face formed in the paving stone. "Bye, bye, Elton. Bye, bye."

Elton just knelt there in silence, staring at the paving stone that had spoken to him and said goodbye.

"Who was she?" Rose asked quietly, all animosity towards the man gone.

"That was Ursula," he said with tears in his eyes. Rose realised that he was just a mate to her mum, that it was her mum who had gotten the wrong idea (again). She walked over and knelt down beside Elton and put a comforting arm around his shoulders.

The Doctor looked on in proud amazement, Rose Tyler, courageous, and oh so compassionate towards others.

* * *

Rose was on her way back to her mother to tell her that she had gotten the wrong end of the stick when it came to Elton. He already had a girlfriend, even though she was now made of cement. He had been coerced into befriending Jackie so that he could find Rose, and ultimately the Doctor.

As she watched the time rotor pump up and down, she thought guiltily about her mum again and how she'd had to ask a stranger to fix her dilapidated washing machine.

"Doctor?" she asked, hesitantly.

"Mmmm," he replied distractedly, concentrating on the console.

"Y'know that lottery ticket you got for that teacher at Deffry Vale High School?"

Suddenly, she had his full attention. "Yes, what of it?" he asked suspiciously.

"Well, I was wonderin'..., if you could get one for Mum…, y'know, not millions or anythin', that'd do her head in, just enough to help her out I mean."

"What's brought this on?"

"Well, I've been thinkin', we live the life of Riley, we have food, and we have TV, internet and phone. We go anywhere we like, an' never have to pay a thing, an' there's Mum, havin' to rely on strangers to fix knackered washin' machines now that Mickey's not there to look out for her."

"Hmm, I see your point…, how much do you think she needs?" he asked, surprising Rose by not arguing.

What Rose didn't realise, and he would never let on, was that he had a great deal of respect for Jackie Tyler. A single mum, who had raised such an amazing daughter, under such tragic circumstances, made even more tragic, by knowing that Pete Tyler had the potential to become a millionaire, just as he had dreamed.

"Er…, I don't know, five hundred, a thousand? Enough for her to buy a new washin' machine, pay off some debts, have a holiday."

"Let's have a look at Saturday then," he said, studying the display screen. "This Saturday, five numbers, there will be 249 winners, each getting £1,178; Jackie will be one of those winners."

Rose squealed and hugged him. "Thank you, thank you, that's brilliant."

**Clifton Parade, Peckham, London.**

Jackie Tyler was in the local, cheap supermarket, picking up a carton of milk, the cheap tea bags that were an acquired taste (which she hadn't acquired yet), a cheap loaf, plastic wrapped, anaemic cheese, and a tub of sunflower spread. Hopefully, she would soon have saved enough money to start shopping at a proper supermarket.

She popped into the newsagent to pick up a gossip magazine, one of the luxuries she allowed herself, and glanced at the National Lottery display stand. She was tempted, sorely tempted, she'd seen the documentary on the television about the winners, how it had changed their lives. It would certainly change hers.

But the odds of winning were stacked against her; she had heard that you had more chance of dialling random numbers and speaking to the Queen, than you had of winning the jackpot.

She returned to her flat and placed the carrier bag on the table, before reaching for the kettle and filling it. She felt the familiar fluttering in her chest as the TARDIS materialised in the courtyard downstairs. She put three mugs on the worktop and put a tea bag in each one.

It took them longer than usual to enter the flat, and Jackie assumed that he was probably bodging up some repair on that wreck of a ship of his. To say it was able to be bigger on the inside, and able to travel through time and space, it was still a wreck.

She heard the key in the lock, and the pair of them were chatting away as they came down the hallway.

"Mum, you in?" Rose called.

"In the kitchen Sweetheart, there's a cuppa waitin' for ya."

They walked into the kitchen, and Rose was beaming a smile at her mum.

"Yer look like the cat that got the cream," Jackie said.

"Well, I've got a surprise for ya, but you've gotta keep it secret."

"Oh yeah, an' what would that be then?" Jackie asked suspiciously.

"First things first Mum, I've seen Elton, and I think you were barkin' up the wrong tree there, he had a girlfriend…, well, still has a girlfriend…, well, sort of has a girlfriend," she rambled. Jackie smiled as she saw how she'd picked up the Doctor's way of talking.

"Anyway, he's sorted now, but I was concerned about ya not havin' Mickey to rely on to fix yer washin' machine, so…."

"Y'haven't gone an' bought one 'ave ya? 'Cos I won't 'ave it y'know," Jackie said firmly. She might be struggling a bit with money, but she wasn't poor, and she wouldn't accept charity.

"No Mum, I spent a quid on this," she said, taking the lottery ticket out of her pocket.

"Oh Sweetheart, ya shouldn't waste ya money on them."

"Er, Mum," she said, with a 'dribbled on your blouse' tone of voice, and nodding at the Doctor. "Doctor…, time traveller…, time machine…."

The penny dropped, or more like the 117,800 pennies dropped, when she realised what Rose was hinting at. Her eyes went wide, and her mouth fell open.

"D'ya mean…."

"Yeah, it's a winnin' ticket, well it will be, but don't go crazy, it's not the jackpot, it'll be enough so you can get a new washin' machine an' anythin' else that you need. Oh, an' 'ave a nice holiday somewhere, eh?"

Jackie's eyes started to well up, as she stood and hugged the pair of them. "Oh thank you…, both of you…, that money will be really helpful."

The Doctor and Rose drank their mugs of tea, said goodbye to Jackie, and went back to the TARDIS. The Doctor took the TARDIS into the Vortex, and joined Rose in the kitchen, where she was cooking dinner.

"Fish and chips," she said to his enquiring look.

"Oh brilliant." He looked like a child in a sweet shop.

As an extra treat, she put the fish and chips in paper, and they went through to the living room to spend the evening in front of the TV. As they were eating, Rose shuffled over, snuggled up against his shoulder,looked up at him and smiled.

"What?" he said, returning her smile.

"Nothin'..., I was just thinkin', about all this, the TARDIS, the travellin'..., the chips," she said with a laugh. "...You, I love it, I really love it."

A big smile spread across his face, and he chuckled. "Me too." He put his fish and chips on his lap, and reached his arms around her shoulders. "Me too."

They watched a variety of programs from a variety of planets; a nature documentary about some weird, semi-intelligent plant. A 'Friends' type show that had small furry aliens with tails, the situations those tails got them into were hilarious. And there was a space version of 'MASH'.

"Hey," the Doctor nudged Rose, as her eyes started to droop. "It's past someone's bedtime."

"I must have been droppin' off," she yawned. "For a skinny bloke, your shoulder is really comfortable."

"Skinny eh? How's this for skinny?" With his left arm already around her shoulders, he turned towards her, scooped up her legs with his right arm, and stood up.

"Aaah, Watcha doin'?" she laughed, clinging around his neck.

"Taking you to bed," he said.

Rose's face had a puzzled, surprised, and expectant expression at those words. "Really?"

The Doctor realised that it had sounded better in his head, and rephrased it. "To your bedroom…, I'm taking you to your bedroom…, so you can go to bed…, and sleep." That was enough digging of holes for one night.

He carried her down the hallway to her room, and gently placed her on the bed.

"Thank you," she said with a coy smile.

"You're welcome. I'll go and make some hot chocolate, while you get changed." He went out the door with a waggle of his eyebrows.

Rose smiled to herself and quickly changed into her pyjamas, and climbed under the duvet. Shortly afterwards, there was a knock at the door.

"Are you decent?" he asked through the door.

"Never been decent in me life," she shot back. There was a chuckle from the other side of the door, and he took that to be a yes. He came in holding two mugs in one hand.

"There you are." He placed her mug on the bedside table and was about to sit in the chair. Rose, on the other hand, felt that it was time to test the water, and see how far their relationship had come.

"Would you mind…?" she said, patting the top of the duvet next to her. "Like I said, your shoulder was really comfortable."

The Doctor looked at the bed she was patting, and her gorgeous, expectant smile. In his previous incarnations, he wouldn't have even considered it, but in this body, just like holding her hand felt SO right, and cuddling Rose Tyler felt even better.

He walked around the bed, propped up some pillows, and sat next to her, holding out his arm for her to snuggle into his shoulder. She grabbed her mug, and leaned into him, making herself comfortable.

"So, on Earth, or off Earth?" he asked her, wanting to know which of his adventures she wanted to listen to.

"Mmmm, last night was 'off Earth', so how's about an 'on Earth' tonight." She took a sip of her delicious drink.

"Okay then, what haven't I told you about yet?" he pondered. "Yet…, Yeti, I haven't told you about the time I faced the Yeti yet, have I? Oh, I like that..., Yeti-yet, Yeti-yet…."

"Don't talk beck," Rose said in a South African accent, thinking of the 'Yakkity Yak' song, and laughing at her play on words.

The Doctor laughed with her, and then started his narrative. "I was in my second incarnation…."

"It still sounds weird when you say that, like you're wearin' your second suit or somethin'."

"I suppose it is in a way…, same person, made to look different by wearing something different, in my case it's skin."

"Oh it's more than that though, compared to when I first met you, this 'you' is more at ease…, seems less troubled by your past."

'Or maybe I just hide it better', he thought to himself. "So it was the Himalayas, 1935, pudding basin haircut; I was with Victoria and Jamie…."


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes: This chapter may be a bit controversial, but when you look closely at the performances, and it may just be the chemistry between Tennant and Piper, but there is definitely something going on between them.**

**Chapter 11**

Pull-kick-pull-kick-breath, pull-kick-pull-kick-breath.

The Doctor was swimming lengths of the Olympic sized pool, trying to sort his head out. Long after Rose had fallen asleep, he had just sat there, reluctant to move…, and he wondered why? It wasn't because he'd been afraid of waking her up; he'd felt the regular, slow rise and fall of her chest against his, her arm, relaxed over his chest. When he'd looked down at her gorgeous face, he'd seen her eyes moving under the lids as she'd dreamed.

Pull-kick-pull-kick-breath, pull-kick-pull-kick-breath.

He'd imagined those gorgeous, hazel eyes, gazing on the sights that her dream was showing her. Why was everything about this girl gorgeous? He was feeling things that he hadn't felt in hundreds of years, feelings that he hadn't felt since he had lived on Gallifrey, feelings he'd had when he'd had…, a family.

Pull-kick-pull-kick-breath, pull-kick-pull-kick-breath.

Something was stirring inside him; 'This is the Beast within, and it has woken. It is the heart that beats in the darkness. It is the blood that will never cease. And now it will rise'. The Beast that was his emotions had woken and the universe had better watch out.

Pull-kick-pull-kick-breath, pull-kick-pull-kick-breath.

Reinette of course, had woken the Beast, when she snuck inside his head, while he was examining her thoughts. She had inadvertently stimulated the emotion centre in the Limbic system of his brain, and now he couldn't switch it off.

Pull-kick-pull-kick-breath, pull-kick-pull-kick-breath, turn.

But the Beast had stirred before, when the TARDIS took him to that department store, and he'd rescued Rose Tyler by taking her hand and telling her to run. He had been broken and vulnerable at that time, and she'd shown him such compassion and understanding.

Pull-kick-pull-kick-breath, pull-kick-pull-kick-breath.

And then he had regenerated, the flames of regeneration burning away some of the guilt and remorse, replacing them with hope and…, what? An appreciation of life…and the appreciation of a pink and yellow girl. But with those, came the memories of a wife, children, grandchildren, all gone now, turned to dust.

He stopped at the edge of the pool and caught his breath, thinking about previous conversations. 'I thought you and me were..., I obviously got it wrong'... 'You just leave us behind…. Is that what you're going to do to me?'

'No, not to you'... 'I don't age. I regenerate…. But humans decay…. You wither and you die, imagine watching that happen to someone who you…, love'. There, he'd finished that sentence, and he gasped at the emotion. He saw the smiling face of his long dead wife, from when they first met, as a young bride, as a mother, a grandmother, and as a…. That image was still too much for him, but the grey, drawn, wrinkled face started to morph, the wrinkles faded, the skin tightened, the grey hair took on a golden hue; he was looking at the smiling face of Rose.

* * *

Rose entered the console room, wearing black trousers, yellow T-shirt and her denim jacket. She'd put her hair into a loose ponytail on the side.

"Mornin'" she said cheerfully.

The Doctor looked up from the console. "Morning, sleep well?"

"Yeah, always do in the TARDIS. So what are we up to today then?"

Swimming in the Olympic sized pool had given him an idea. "How about your near future, 21st century London?"

"Er, yeah, okay," she said uncertainly.

"Right, here we go then." He pulled the lever, and they felt the TARDIS land. He walked down the ramp with Rose behind him and he opened the door, to see a blue shipping container in his way, with only a six inch gap in between.

"Ah," he said and closed the door, turning and looking sheepishly at Rose. "A slight miscalculation," he said as he ran back up to the console and started the time rotor again.

"Don't tell me, 19th century Cardiff again, or Red Coat soldiers in Scotland? No, I know, an army of Daleks," she said with a grin.

"No, no, nothing like that, just ninety degrees out of place."

"Eh?"

"You'll see," he said as he re-landed the TARDIS.

"Ah!" he said with satisfaction, looking around.

Rose checked out a Shane Ward Greatest Hits poster on one of the containers. "So, near future, yeah?"

"I had a passing fancy. Only it didn't pass, it stopped." He started walking across the wasteland towards the street beyond, with Rose by his side.

They walked onto a street that said 'Dame Kelly Holmes Close'. "Thirtieth Olympiad," he said.

Rose linked arms with him. "No way! Why didn't I think of this? That's great." She hugged his arm.

"Only seems like yesterday a few naked Greek blokes were tossing a discus about," he said as they walked under a banner for the 'London, 2012", with the Olympic rings on it. "Wrestling each other in the sand with crowds stood around baying... No, wait a minute... that was Club Med." He bumped her shoulder and laughed, Rose rolled her eyes at the joke.

"Just in time for the opening doo dah..., ceremony, tonight, I thought you'd like that. Last one they had in London was dynamite. Wembley, 1948. I loved it so much, I went back and watched it all over again," he rambled on, not noticing that Rose had stopped walking and was looking at a lamppost. "Fella carrying the torch, lovely chap, what was his...? Mark...? John...? Mark...? Legs like pipe cleaners, but strong as a whippet."

"Doctor," Rose called, the lamppost had posters on it.

"And in those days, everybody had a tea party to go to."

"Doctor!" she called more urgently, this struck a chord with her.

"Did you ever have one of those little cakes with the crunchy ball bearings on top?"

"You should really look at this," she shouted. She remembered the posters with her face on them, after she'd been away for twelve months.

He turned to look at Rose as he carried on talking. "Do you know those, those, things…?" He started to walk back to her. "Nobody else in this entire galaxy's ever even bothered to make edible ball bearings. Genius."

He stopped talking, and started reading. Two children were missing, Dale Hicks and Jane McCullen. "What's taking them, do you think?" He started looking around in a circle. "Snatching children from a thoroughly ordinary street like this…. Why's it so cold….? Is someone reducing the temperature?"

"It says they all went missing this week," she said quietly, she was imagining what the parents were going through, just like her mum went through. "Why would a person do something like this?"

"What makes you think it's a person?" he asked, when they heard a door open, and a woman put out a rubbish bag, before hurrying back inside.

"Whatever it is, it's got the whole street scared to death. Doctor, what…?" she turned, and saw him running up the street.

* * *

The Doctor was walking back into Dame Kelly Holmes Close, after making his way back from the Olympic stadium. There were a lot of people about, as the children had returned home.

"Cake?" a familiar voice called from behind him.

He turned to look, and saw Rose, holding out a fairy cake with silver sugar ball decorations on it, and laughed out loud. "Top banana." He took a bite. "Mmm. I can't stress this enough. Ball bearings you can eat, masterpiece!"

They stood and looked at each other for a moment, and then fell into an embrace, not a hug, a proper, passionate embrace.

"Ooh, I thought I'd lost you."

"Nah, not on a night like this. This is a night for lost things being found." He grabbed her hand. "Come on."

"What now?" she asked uncertainly.

"I want to go to the Games," he said in a high voice. "It's what we came for."

She nudged his shoulder. "Go on, give us a clue. Which events do we do well in?"

"Well, I will tell you this... Papua New Guinea surprises everyone in the shot put."

"Really...? You're joking, aren't you?" she asked. "Doctor, are you serious or are you joking?"

"Wait and see," he said, taking her hand and walking down the street.

Fireworks started flashing in the sky. "You know what? They keep on trying to split us up, but they never ever will," she said light-heartedly, she was so relieved to get him back, but his reaction surprised her.

"Never say never ever," he said seriously, he knew how things could change in an instant.

"Nah, we'll always be okay, you and me." The Doctor didn't react, he seemed distracted. "Don't you reckon, Doctor?" She was looking for reassurance from him.

"There's something in the air," he said quietly, looking to the sky. "Something coming."

"What?" He was worrying her now.

He could feel it in the time lines. "A storm's approaching."

He shrugged off the feeling and smiled, changing his mood in an instant, in that way that left Rose struggling to keep up. "We missed the opening ceremony, sorry."

"You didn't though," she laughed. "You were the main event from what I saw."

"Hah! I don't think it went quite as the organisers planned it, that's for sure."

"C'mon," she said pulling his hand. "Let's go home, we can come back tomorrow and watch some of the events."

"Ah, Rose, you can't see your mum outside of linear time, remember what happened when we saw your dad?"

"No," Rose said smiling. "I meant our home…, the TARDIS."

The Doctor stopped and looked at her, amazed. "Really…, the TARDIS? Well yes, of course, let's go."

They walked down the street, arm in arm, completely unaware that 48 Bucknell House was now occupied by a young couple with two children. Jackie Tyler and her daughter Rose were on the list of the missing, presumed dead, from the Battle of Canary Wharf, five years previously.

"So what do you want to see first then?" Rose asked him as they ambled across the wasteland.

"Fencing, definitely fencing, sabre, I've got a thing about fencing since that little altercation with the Sycorax."

"Little altercation," Rose laughed. "You were fighting for the survival of the human race."

"So," he grinned. "Nothing new there then. And what about you, what do you want to see?"

"Gymnastics. D' yer know, I think I could've been in the team if Mum could 'ave afforded the after school club."

He put the key in the lock and opened the door. "I have no doubt at all." He'd seen her as a six year old, and she'd shown promise even at that young age.

In keeping with the spirit of the stadium event, they had hot dogs for supper, as they watched the unusual opening ceremony via TARDIS video streaming.

["Just look at this! Utterly incredibly scenes at the Olympic stadium. Eighty thousand athletes and spectators. They disappeared, they've come back! They've returned. They've reappeared. It's quite incredible. Bob, this will certainly…,"] the announcer was saying.

"I was really worried at this point, when you hadn't reappeared out of the drawing, I thought I'd lost you," Rose told him.

He reached over and squeezed her hand. "Nah, you don't get rid of me that easily."

["But hang on; the Torch Bearer seems to be in a bit of trouble. We did see a flash of lightning earlier that seemed to strike him. Maybe he's injured. He's definitely in trouble.

Does this mean that the Olympic dream is dead?"]

Rose watched again as the Doctor picked up the Olympic torch. "I saw this on Trish's Telly, an' I nearly cried with relief when I saw you." The Doctor grinned at her and waggled his eyebrows.

["There's a mystery man. He's picked up the flame. We've no idea who he is. He's carrying the flame. Yes, he's carrying the flame and no one wants to stop him. It's more than a flame now, Bob. It's more than heat and light. It's hope, and it's courage, and it's love."]

"He got that right," Rose said, and talking of love, there was a question that had been niggling at her for ages, and she felt now might be the time to ask.

"Doctor, do you like me?" she asked hesitantly.

The Doctor took his eyes off the TV and looked at her. "Eh, what kind of question is that? Of course I like you."

"No, I mean, do you REALLY like me?"

Oh, hang on; this was one of those human female questions. She wasn't asking him if he liked her, she was asking him something else, and the TARDIS translation matrix was no help at all.

"Yes, I REALLY like you," he said, hoping that the real question would become apparent.

"Only, with Mickey an' me splittin' up, an' him bein' in a different universe an' all..., well, you haven't made a move or anythin'," she said trying, in a round about way to find out if their relationship was going anywhere.

Ah, there it was the hidden meaning in the question. He had to admit, he'd asked himself this question recently. "Rose, there are a lot of things you don't know about me," he started.

"You're tellin' me, I only just found out today that you're a dad."

Oh yes, he'd let that slip earlier when he was distracted by building the Isolus scanner. He had used to be a dad, past tense, but he felt now wasn't the time to point that out. His face became sad at the memory.

"Yeah, sorry about that, I should have told you about that before now..., but these things are difficult for me." She reached over and held his hand.

"My physical scars heal when I regenerate, but the emotional scars, they don't burn away, and I carry them with me. I have suitcases full of emotional baggage up here." He tapped his temple. "So, Rose Tyler, I do like you, I really like you..., a lot. And I respect you, and I care about you a great deal."

Rose was getting upset now, her selfish impatience was making him uncomfortable, and she didn't want that for him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to push you or anythin', forget I said anythin'. I was just feelin' insecure, what with Sarah Jane and Reinette, I just wondered where I stood with you, if..."

"Yes, Rose," he interrupted. "You stand with me, at my side. You're helping me to heal those scars, and you've been so patient with me, and if you'll continue to do that for me, then yes."

A tear trickled down her cheek. This poor man, this poor proud, scarred man was asking her for help, so that he could move on and look to the future. Rose could see, that although the memories were still painful, he'd come to terms with them and was finding his peace.

She wiped her cheeks with her hands, and gave him a half hearted smile. "D'ya remember after the Slitheen thing, I told you I was signin' up an' that you were stuck with me? Well I meant it; I'm stickin' with you forever."

He had said yes, he wanted her by his side! That yes meant they had a chance at a future together, and she would do anything she could to help that happen. She snuggled into his shoulder again, and he held her close, running mental calculations on how long 'forever' really was.

They remained cuddled on the sofa for the rest of the evening, until it was time for her to get some sleep. Rose went to her room and changed into her pyjamas, and the Doctor brought in the mugs of hot chocolate, in their usual night time routine. And tonight, without prompting, or being asked, he sat on the bed with her and put his arm around her, it had been a challenging day, and an emotional evening.

"So, what do you want to hear about tonight?" he asked her.

She rested her head against his chest and looked up into his dark eyes. "Let's see, tell me about another one of your companions. Where there any other feisty ones like Sarah Jane and me?"

He looked into the distance and then smiled. "Leela, she was definitely feisty."

"Wha', Like 'Leela' from 'Futurama', the 'fit' bird with one eye?"

The Doctor chuckled. "It's a good job she's not here to hear you say that, you'd have a knife between your ribs right about now."

Rose looked stunned. "I said feisty, not homicidal, what were you doin' travellin' with someone like that."

"Don't be too quick to judge, she was alright Leela. She was a Sevateem warrior, went about in a leather bikini, and carried a knife and poisonous janis thorns."

"Leather bikini, janis thorns? Which one were you when you travelled with her?"

"Number four, floppy hat and big scarf," he said with a smile.

"Oh yeah, I like him."

"Leela was a savage, but a smart savage, and quick to learn. We had quite a few adventures, let's see, it's time for an 'off Earth' tonight isn't it? So, let's think…, oh I know, it was our last adventure together, we were on Gallifrey, and I claimed the Presidency…."

"Hold on, hold on, time out here. You were President on your home planet?" she asked incredulously. She knew nothing about this incredible man, and Gallifrey, was that wise to talk about his home? "Are you gonna be alright talkin' about it?"

"Oh yes, it was a good adventure, and Leela stayed behind to marry a Gallifreyan, but I'm getting ahead of myself…."

Rose nuzzled into his shoulder and made herself comfortable as he told the tale of Leela, he gently stroked her hair without thinking as he talked. He told of how he met her again in his seventh body, when she turned up at the old family house with Ace. She wasn't on Gallifrey when it was destroyed, but he didn't know what happened to her after that.

When he had finished, Rose was dozing with her head resting on his chest. He took the empty mug from her limp hand and shuffled from under her, gently lowering her head to the pillow. He had an overwhelming urge to kiss her cheek, and didn't resist, his lips gently brushing her cheek.

Still in the fog of early sleep, Rose reached up and caressed the back of his neck, her head turned, and her lips found his. It was a simple, chaste kiss, and the Doctor didn't resist, because it was the most gorgeous kiss he had ever experienced. It was sweet, innocent, and expressed the special bond that had developed between them.

Her hand released his neck, and her head rested back on the pillow with a contented 'mmmmph' sound. He stood up and walked to the door, turning back to look at his pink and yellow girl, asleep under the duvet. As he stood there, he remembered a phrase that Jackie used a lot with Rose.

"Goodnight Sweetheart," he whispered as he left the room.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes: This chapter is based on two scenes, one of them deleted. "How long are you going to stay with me?", "Forever", and when they arrive back on the Powell Estate, and walk hand in hand like two teenage lovers.**

**Chapter 12**

When Rose awoke the next morning, she wasn't sure if she had dreamt, or if it was real, that the Doctor had kissed her. It wouldn't surprise her if it was a dream; she'd had plenty of dreams like that since Cassandra had hijacked her body and taken liberties.

After a shower, and getting dressed, she went to the kitchen for breakfast, and as usual, found the Doctor there waiting for her, with some waffles this morning, and maple syrup.

"Morning," he said with a smile.

"Mornin'," she replied, looking at him, and trying to work out if he was more cheerful than normal. She dismissed it as wish fulfilment of the dream that she'd had about him kissing her.

After breakfast, they left the TARDIS and hopped on a bus to the O2 Arena, formerly known as the Millenium Dome, and now called the North Greenwich Arena for the Olympics. The Doctor used his psychic paper as a bus pass, which worked very effectively.

This venue was hosting the preliminaries of the artistic gymnastics, and Rose was in awe of some of the performances that she witnessed. When they came out of the arena, they looked across the river at the collection of skyscrapers, the tallest of which was One Canada Square, which was synonymous with Canary Wharf, where, unbeknown to them, their destinies lay.

After the gymnastics, they were able to visit the ExCeL Exhibition Centre, to watch the individual sabre in the fencing, where the Doctor pointed out some of the main players, and their strengths and weaknesses.

"Do you know who's goin' to win? 'Cos I'd have thought that would be a bit borin'," Rose said.

"Nah, think of Torvill and Dean, Sarajevo 1984 Winter Olympics and the Bolero. How many times have you watched it? You know they get a perfect score and win the gold, but it doesn't detract from the perfection of the performance."

"Oh yeah, I see what yer mean."

And so, over the next two weeks, they followed the preliminaries in as many events as they could, and attended as many of the finals as they could. They had been holding hands, hugging when a member of the England squad won, and cuddling up in the evening in front of the TV. Rose felt certain that something was changing in the Doctor's demeanour, he seemed to be more open (for him anyway), and more, well, loving is the only word she could think of.

Eventually, it came to the day of the closing ceremony, and Rose was roused from her slumber by a gentle knocking on her door.

"Rose, you awake?"

"Hmmmm." She lifted her head off the pillow and wiped her hair from her face. "Yeah," she yawned.

The Doctor backed into the room, opening the door with his bum, 'a very nice bum' Rose thought as she saw it enter the room. He turned around and she saw he was holding a tray that contained a breakfast of toast, marmalade, orange juice, and a thin vase which contained a single red rose.

"Mornin'," she said, a big smile spreading across her face. "What's all this?"

"Breakfast in bed, I thought it was about time I spoilt you."

"Oh, that's lovely, thank you," she said, risking a peck on the cheek as he leaned forward to put the tray on her lap. She wasn't sure if she was reading the signals correctly, and she wanted to see how he reacted.

She needn't have worried; he gave her a big smile and snuggled up beside her on the bed, helping himself to a piece of toast.

"I could get used to this," she told him as she spread some marmalade on her toast.

"Quite right too," he said.

Over the last two weeks, since Rose's question about their relationship, he had been soul searching, and his soul was nine hundred years old, that was a lot of searching. Rose had been upfront with Mickey and told him that they were over as a couple, and the reason for that was that she wanted to be with him.

And all the time that Rose had been travelling with him, she had helped him to confront his demons, and if not banish them, at least tame them. She had also helped him connect with his emotions, to come to terms with his guilt, his anger, his pain, his loss.

It was time for him to be upfront with her, he didn't know where this would go, or how long it would last, Hell, he was nine hundred years old, and no spotty teenaged virgin, and was under no illusions of how difficult this would be. But Rose had shown that she was committed to him, on more than one occasion, and it was only fair that he did the same.

"We need to talk," he said, looking serious, but happy.

"Wha', is this what I think it is?" her face full of expectation.

"That, Rose Tyler, depends on what you think it is. What I think it is, is me being straight with you, and thanking you for being patient with me when, at times, I've been a complete idiot."

"Only at times?" she teased, giving him a lopsided smile.

He laughed at that. "You're right, as usual, I mean even a Dalek could see what I couldn't…, or wouldn't," he admitted. "I was broken and damaged when you met me, afraid to feel in case it consumed me and destroyed me. But you took the raw wound of my guilt, my anger, and my pain, and you soothed it, caressed it and healed the wound. And for that, I thank you."

"You're welcome. Does this mean you are now officially my boyfriend?" she said, giving him her teasing, tongue between the teeth smile.

"Oh yeah, I suppose it does," he said with a smile, and then looking thoughtful, almost worried.

"What's up, not havin' second thoughts before we've even started are ya?" she said with a frown.

"Oh, no, no, nothing like that. I was just wondering what your mum will say."

Rose spluttered a laugh, and looked at him lovingly. "Oh you, Mum really likes you, I know she makes out that she doesn't, but trust me, when she teases someone, it means she likes them, you'd know if she didn't like you. Now come here."

She reached up to the side of his face, and tentatively brush her lips against his, she was still unsure how far and how fast to take this new development. 'One step at a time' she thought to herself, one step at a time.

Blimey, he was being kissed by Rose Tyler, and it was brilliant, molto bene, ace-amondo. 'Ace-amondo'? No he wouldn't be using that one again. It wasn't the first time they'd kissed, but it was the first time that she had been aware and in control, and it was wonderful.

"Mmmmm, if this happens when we're boyfriend and girlfriend, then yes, I am definitely your boyfriend."

Rose giggled at his dopey grin. "C'mon, let's finish our breakfast, and we can go an' see the last events and then catch the closing ceremony."

The Doctor was relieved that Rose was relaxed and enjoying herself. He carried a lot of emotional baggage with him, and it was going to take a long time to unpack it all, iron it, fold it nicely, and put it away. But what he knew about his new girlfriend was that she was kind, considerate, and patient.

That night they walked along Dame Kelly Holmes Close for the last time, and went back at the TARDIS. They walked up the ramp, arm in arm, and at the console they turned to face one another, Rose putting her arms around his neck, and his arms went around her waist.

"You mister, were windin' me up," she said with a pouty smile.

"Me?" he said innocently.

"Yeah, Papua New Guinea in the shot put you said."

"Oh yeah, I'd forgotten about that…. You're right, I was winding you up," he said with his boyish grin. "But tell you what; to make it up to you, I'll take you somewhere where they have flying fish."

"Oh, I've seen those on the telly, they jump out of the river into the boats."

"No, I'm talking fish that fly," he said flapping his arms. "Ray-like fish with hydrogen swim bladders that glide gracefully through the air." He started setting the controls on the console.

"Wow that sounds great."

The TARDIS landed in a valley, surrounded by strange, arched rock formations. The rising sun shone through the formations, casting interesting shadows across the valley. Hand in hand the Doctor and Rose walked down the ramp and stepped through the doors.

Rose looked on in wonder at the strange landscape and the sun low on the horizon. There was a low whooshing sound, as a large 'Manta Ray' like animal slowly glided over their heads, followed by another, and then another. They performed a graceful, aerial ballet in front of them, and they just stood there in awe, side by side.

"How many more wonders are you goin' to show me?" she asked him in a quiet voice, not wanting to disturb the magical moment.

He looked over at her and smiled. "How long are you going to stay with me?"

She returned his smile. "Forever."

Their hands found each other, their fingers entwined.

"Then there's a whole lifetime of wonders out there just waiting for us."

They stood quietly, enjoying the demonstration of aerial prowess until the creatures had finished feeding and flown away.

"Oh, that was beautiful…, what is this place?" she said, hugging his arm.

"It's an asteroid in the Rings of Akhaten. You can't see the planet Akhaten at the moment, it's below the horizon," he told her, nodding to his left. "It's sentient you know."

"What is?"

"The planet, imagine that, a planet that can think. Even better, imagine if your planet could think..., it'd probably say 'get off and leave me alone'," he said with a grin, Rose laughed. "Oh, and 'just scratch that bit between my Himalayas before you go, I can't quite reach'."

He pointed to something that looked like a small moon. "The inhabited asteroid Tiaanamat, over there is built on the largest piece of ore on the outer ring as a docking point. Many species from across the universe live there, buying and selling rare and exotic goods in vast winding markets."

"Ooh, markets…, can I go shoppin'?" she said with a cheeky smile.

* * *

Rose stepped out of the TARDIS with her rucksack and put it on while she waited for the Doctor to join her. They were in the children's play area near Bucknell House, where the climbing frames were surrounded with railings. He came out and closed the door and they set off towards her mum's flat.

It was her mum's flat now, not hers, not any longer. Her home was with the Doctor, on the TARDIS. She skipped over the low railing, and their hands instinctively sort each other out. They swung their arms, and had a lightness to their step that reflected the relaxed ease of the new phase of their relationship.

They chatted and laughed as they walked through the courtyard, she was telling him about the latest phone conversation she'd had with her mum. Jackie had asked for something in a shop that could be taken two ways, one of which was very embarrassing.

"She's lovely," Rose laughed.

"Yeah..., yeah," the Doctor laughed. "Brilliant really."

"We had a big chat about everythin' as usual... We get on really well," she told him, almost skipping with happiness as they approached the security door.

He opened the door for her. "She really wants to see you again."

"I know, and me her." Even if they didn't tell Jackie that they were a couple, if they weren't careful, she would see it in the way they were behaving.

"Mum, it's us! We're back!" Rose called out from the hallway as they entered the flat.

Jackie ran from the kitchen to greet them. "Oh, I don't know why you bother with that phone. You never use it!"

Rose just grinned at her pretended annoyance. "Shut up, come here!" she said as she grabbed her into a hug. The Doctor smiled at them and squeezed past.

"Oh, I love you!" Jackie said.

"I love you!" Rose replied.

"I love you so much!" Jackie spotted the Doctor sneaking past. "Oh no, you don't. Come here!"

Jackie grabbed him and gave him a big wet kiss. "Oh, you lovely big fella! Oh, you're all mine," she cooed, as she hugged him.

"Just, just, just put me down!" What was the matter with her? Hang on, did she know, had she spotted that they were a couple?

"Yes, you are," Jackie said and gave him another kiss for good luck. The Doctor looked decidedly uncomfortable and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

Rose took the rucksack off her shoulders and handed it to her mum. "I've got loads of washin' for ya, and I got you this," she said showing her a gold ornament. "It's from the market on this asteroid bazaar. It's made of..., er..., what's it called?" She looked over her shoulder to the Doctor, who was leafing through a magazine.

"Bazoolium," he reminded her.

"Bazoolium," she repeated with an excited smile. "When it gets cold, yeah, it means it's going to rain. When it's hot, it's going to be sunny. You can use it to tell the weather."

"I've got a surprise for you an' all," Jackie told her.

Rose looked disappointed. "Oh, I get her bazoolium, she doesn't even say thanks.

"Guess who's coming to visit? You're just in time. He'll be here at ten past. Who do you think it is?"

"I don't know."

"Oh go on, guess."

"No, I hate guessing. Just tell me."

"It's your granddad, Granddad Prentice. He's on his way any minute…. Right, cup of tea!" she said, going through to the kitchen to put the kettle on.

"She's gone mad," Rose said told the Doctor, in a quiet, conspiratorial tone.

"Tell me something new," He replied with a smirk.

"Granddad Prentice, that's her dad. But he died..., like, ten years ago. Oh, my God. She's lost it." She went to the kitchen door, the Doctor behind her. "Mum? What you just said about granddad…."

"Any second now," Jackie interrupted her.

Rose was concerned about her mum. Was she developing dementia, had she had a stroke? She felt guilty that she hadn't been here for her. "But he passed away. His heart gave out. Do you remember that?"

"Of Course I do." Jackie gave her a look as though it was Rose who had gone daft.

"Then how can he come back?"

"Why don't you ask him yourself? Ten past, here he comes."

The Doctor and Rose watched in disbelief, as a shadowy figure walked through the exterior wall, the kitchen units, and stood beside Jackie.

"Here we are, then. Dad, say hello to Rose. Ain't she grown?"

What the hell?!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes: This is it. I think we all know where this is going, and it'll all end in tears. (It made me cry)**

**Chapter 13**

'WHOP!'

"I think this is the on switch," Rose said, as she 'jumped' back from what the Doctor nicknamed 'Pete's World'. The Doctor looked up with surprise from the computer he was rebooting.

What the hell was she doing? He was fairly certain he was going to die in his attempt to defeat the Daleks and the Cybermen, and he didn't want Rose to go the same way. And if by some miracle they did survive, she would never be able to see Jackie again..., ever. He ran over and gripped her arms.

"Once the breach collapses, that's it," he said angrily. "You will never be able to see her again, your own mother!" He knew what that was like, not being able to see your own family, and he didn't want Rose to go through that anguish.

"I made my choice a long time ago, and I'm never going to leave you," she said in a quiet, but determined voice. Her mind was made up, she'd said forever, and she meant it. "So what can I do to help?"

"Systems rebooted. Open access," an electronic female voice announced.

He saw that defiant look on her face, and God how he loved it. "Those coordinates over there, set them all at six. And hurry up."

She went over to the terminal, removing the dimension button from around her neck, and started entering the coordinates. She saw a proximity alarm flashing and clicked on the icon.

"We've got Cybermen on the way up," she said, looking at the surveillance footage on the computer.

The Doctor ran over to have a look. "How many floors down?"

"Just one." The Doctor went back to the computer and finished inputting the lever command code.

"Levers operational," the computer announced, and a broad smile spread across his face.

"That's more like it…, bit of a smile…, the old team," she said, matching his smile.

He grabbed the Magnaclamps. "Hope and Glory, Mutt and Jeff, Shiver and Shake."

"Which one's Shiver?"

"Oh, I'm Shake," he said as he gave her a Magnaclamp. She followed his lead and put it on the wall by the lever.

"Press the red button," he told her, and the clamp fastened itself to the wall. They went to the levers and knelt down in front of them, ready to lift them into the locked position.

"When it starts, just hold on tight. Shouldn't be too bad for us but the Daleks and the Cybermen are steeped in Void stuff. Are you ready?"

"So are they." Rose was looking out of the window of Yvonne Hartman's office, where she could see four Daleks about to attack.

"Let's do it!" he shouted, and they lifted the hefty levers into place.

"Online," the computer announced as they ran to the Magnaclamps to hold on. A bright light came out of the breach and a strong wind rushed into it, sucking the first Daleks through the windows and into itself.

"The breach is open! Into the Void! Ha!"

Daleks and Cybermen started streaming through the window and into the void, becoming a blur as they accelerated from further a field. Something hit the wall hard near Rose, she thought it was the Dalek Crucible, but couldn't be sure. What she was sure of, was that the vibration had loosened her lever and it started to move.

"Offline." the computer told them

Rose tried to reach across to the lever, but it was too far, she would have to let go of the clamp and risk a jump to the lever. The Doctor looked on in horror as he saw her let go of the clamp. 'Oh thank Rassilon for her gymnastics' he thought as she caught the lever and manoeuvred herself into a position where she could push it up.

"I've got to get it upright!" she called out. She looked over at him, and for the first time since he'd met her, he saw fear in her eyes.

"Online and locked," the computer said. She'd done it! But it wasn't over yet, she was closer to the breach now, and the pull was stronger, and she didn't have as firm a grip on the lever as she'd had on the clamp.

"Rose, hold on…! Hold on!" he shouted, reaching out for her, but she couldn't, she was horizontal now, and the pull was too strong. Her world had turned through ninety degrees and she was now dangling from the lever over the very gates of Hell itself.

When their eyes met, he saw that the fear in her eyes had gone, replaced with a calm sorrow and regret. She knew what would happen next, and she was okay with that, she'd had a good life, made all the better by meeting the Doctor.

She felt the last of her fingers lose the fight against the pull of the breach, and felt as though she were floating in mid air. She had no sensation of moving, and she could hear singing, a beautiful sound that she had heard somewhere before.

She started to see her life play out, not before her eyes, but in her minds eye. 'Oh, that really happens then', she thought to herself in amusement, as she saw her childhood in the minutest detail. She saw her mum, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins, old friends, all come to say goodbye one last time.

She saw her holidays on the beach in Tenby, with her red plastic bucket and spade in her hand. She saw birthdays, Christmases, her red bike (brilliant, she loved that bike), Mickey, Jimmy, Henrick's, all of it. The good times, the bad times, and the ugly ones.

And then her life had changed, she had met the Doctor. There was fun and laughter, adventures with lots of running, and the danger didn't seem to matter anymore, 'it was just the bits in between' he had told her mum.

That made her think about her mum, and how she would never know whether she was alive or dead. Although she felt guilty about that, she hoped that she would have been proud that her daughter died saving the world.

She saw today, how it had started out so good, walking hand in hand with her love. Excited about seeing her mum, and maybe telling her about their romance, only to have events overtake them and escalate out of control.

As these images played out in her head, she could see him, swinging on the clamp, reaching out to her and screaming her name. 'If only he'd shown me that much emotion when it mattered' she thought to herself sadly, maybe then we could have been lovers.

She realised she must be moving towards the breach, because he seemed so far away now. 'Don't worry, my Love, my Doctor', she thought, 'it'll be alright, don't cry…, just remember me with a smile, eh?' She remembered a message from oh so long ago. 'And if you want to remember me, then you can do one thing…, that's all..., one thing. Have a good life. Do that for me, Doctor. Have a fantastic life, but don't try and do it on your own, because some thing's are worth getting your heart broken for'.

'Thump!' She'd hit something, and it was holding her. It must be a Cyberman, this was it then, 'please don't let it hurt', she pleaded to what ever wanted to pass itself off as a god.

Wait a minute; whatever was holding her was soft and warm.

What the hell?

She was saved! Oh thank you, she'd been rescued from the jaws of death and she'd be able to keep her promise to him, she would stay with him forever. She looked over her shoulder, and her heart sank when she saw the expression on his face. The pain, the anguish, the loss, she'd seen that look before, when he was all ears and attitude.

And then he was gone.

* * *

Her face! She had turned at the last moment and looked at him, with a look of longing, of love, and realisation, that he had saved her, and he very nearly hadn't. He'd contemplated letting go of the Magnaclamp, and pushing off with his legs so that he could hurtle across the room to hold her in one last embrace before they fell into the Void, because he didn't want her to face that alone.

There were occasions before when he thought that she'd died, in van Statten's bunker, and again on Satellite Five, and on each occasion, he felt as though his world had ended. He didn't want to live with that feeling again, but then a stray, rogue thought flashed through his mind.

What if he could save her?

That thought set in motion a series of events that culminated in Pete Tyler appearing in the corner of the Lever Room, catching Rose, and taking her safely back to his universe.

It had been a Hobson's choice for him, they could both die together, or they could both live apart, either choice would break his hearts, but this was the lesser of two evils. The light faded, and the wall rippled for a few moments before becoming solid once more.

"Systems closed," the electronic voice announced, just in case he hadn't noticed.

He let go of the Magnaclamp, walked down the room, and put his hand and his ear to the wall. Something tingled in his mind, it was Rose. He could feel her, in Pete's World; she was standing in the same place, their bodies occupying the same space. There was one last thing he could do for her, he sent her all the love in his hearts and soul, hoping that she could feel it and keep it with her, wherever she might end up.

His breath caught in his throat, she had felt it, he was certain of that, he'd felt her cries of anguish and despair, and it hurt him; it hurt like that day when Gallifrey burned.

The cracks between the universes were healing and the sensation started to fade.

She was gone!

Forever!

The irony of the situation wasn't lost on him, he had sent her away so that she would be safe with Jackie and Mickey, but she had made a fuss and moaned, and she'd come back. Typical! But he couldn't stay mad at her, because secretly, he had hoped that she would.

And now that she was with Jackie and Mickey, he wanted her back here with him. He put his hands in his pockets and slowly walked away, shoulders hunched, his feet heavy; reluctant to leave the last place where he had seen his Rose.

He wandered unhindered through corridors and stairwells, making his way back to the TARDIS. He could feel her calling him back to her present location in the main warehouse. The Touchwood staff were either wandering about in shock or they were dead, deleted by Cybermen or exterminated by Daleks.

The TARDIS was standing alone, a sentinel in the dimly lit warehouse. He lovingly touched the blue wooden panelling. A warm 'hum' filled his mind as the TARDIS welcomed him back. He stepped inside and leaned back against the door, clicking it shut. His head rested against the door as he stared at the arched ceiling. The TARDIS song had changed to harmonics in a minor key.

It was a Gallifreyan lament for the dead, when the last regeneration had ended and the Time Lord or Lady had finally succumbed to time itself. The TARDIS and Rose were sisters, soul-sisters. Rose had once risked everything to look in to the heart of the TARDIS to save him, and the TARDIS had looked in to Rose. It had given her the power to save her Time Lord, while trying to protect her from the very same force that would kill her. And now she was lost, the TARDIS felt that loss as much as he did.

He felt tears burning his eyes and he looked down from the ceiling over to the console. What he saw next tipped him over the edge as he took a ragged breath and started to weep. Rose's blue hoodie was draped over the handrail. He remembered her leaving it there. She was always leaving her jackets over the handrail.

He slowly slid down the door and ended in a heap on the floor. Tears came freely now as his hearts broke and he cried. The song of the TARDIS changed as she joined him in weeping for their lost soul-mate. He thought about what Tennyson had written about his friend Arthur Hallam. 'Tis better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all'.

For a man who abhors violence, at this precise moment, he felt like travelling back to 1849 and punching him on the nose. If he hadn't dared to love Rose, he wouldn't be feeling as though both his hearts had been torn from his chest. Hundreds of years of running away from his past had dulled the pain of the loss of his wife. Rose had helped him come to terms with the loss of his family..., his home, and now pain was back again, laughing at him for trying to forget.

He didn't know how long he had sat there, wallowing in his grief, but the TARDIS nudged his mind, encouraging him to save his pink and yellow girl. He stood and walked up the ramp to the console, looking at the display screen to select the best location for his plan to succeed.

He set the coordinates and started the time rotor. There was no doubt that he would land in the right place and at the right time, because the TARDIS wanted her 'soul-sister' safe. And she didn't let him down; she landed in a basement communications hub, five minutes before they opened the breach.

Every muscle in his body was screaming for him to run to the top floor, grab Rose and bring her into the TARDIS and fly far away. But every Time Lord instinct was screaming that he couldn't. So he had to stick to his original plan. He went around to the view screen, and tapped into the Torchwood CCTV system, bringing up a view of the lever room where he could see himself and Rose preparing to open the void.

He picked up the trim phone on the console and dialled Jackie's number. The TARDIS routed the call through the Void as it was opened with the levers.

"Hello?" Jackie said, puzzled at who could be calling her in a parallel universe.

"JACQUELINE, ANDREA, SUZETTE TYLER! FOR ONCE IN YOUR LIFE JUST SHUT UP AND HAND THE PHONE TO PETE!" the Doctor shouted down the phone. Jackie was so shocked, she was speechless. She handed the phone to Pete.

"Hello?" Pete said with a questioning voice.

"Pete, I don't have much time. That's a bit silly really when you have a time machine. Sorry, I'm rambling, I'm nervous. Switch the phone to speakerphone." Pete looked at the phone and found the speakerphone button.

"OK, it's on speakerphone," he told the Doctor.

"Right! Rose is in danger!" He heard Jackie gasp. "I'm in the TARDIS and it's routing this call through the cracks in the universe. I've tapped into the surveillance cameras and I'm watching myself and Rose open the breach. Are you in the white room with the levers?" he asked them.

"Yes, I'm looking at the far wall now." Pete replied.

"Good! Rose is at the lever to your right, hanging onto a magnaclamp. In a moment she will let go and re-lock the lever. I need you to hand the phone to Mickey and walk to the right hand corner of the room with one of those yellow buttons." Pete handed over the phone and walked to the corner.

"OK, I'M HERE!" he shouted from the corner, putting one button around his neck and holding the other in his hand.

"Step forward about five paces and brace yourself. Rose is going to lose her grip and I need you to jump in, catch her, and jump out before she's pulled into the breach. You've only got a small amount of void stuff on you, so you'll have some inertia before you feel the pull. Get ready, she's on the lever now, she's losing her grip."

He relived the moment again, as he watched Rose lose her grip and fall towards the void. "Three, two, one, JUMP!"

He heard the 'whop' of the dimension button as Pete appeared and caught Rose; he saw her look back and froze the image on the screen. He zoomed in on her face, tears rolling down his cheeks, as his hand gently caressed the screen, tracing her face with his fingers, as if trying to brush that stray hair behind her ear, as he'd seen her do so many times before, and would never see her do again.

He kissed his fingers and placed them lovingly on her lips on the image.

"Bye Sweetheart," he whispered.

**The End**

**A big thank you to everyone who favourited and followed the story, it's nice to know that you were out there and appreciating my efforts. Many thanks. :)**

**P.S I've added an extra scene to chapter six that I missed from my notes.**


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